Resurrections and Rainbows
by Traum
Summary: A continuation after the Kyoto Arc that negates the happenings afterwards of both the manga and anime.
1. Carried by the Wind

Kenshin Fic

**Resurrections and Rainbows**

** **

Chapter 1

An endless sweep of wind passed through the trees, over the grass, across the fields.It brushed aside the leaves that lay scattered on the ground, pushed along the rivers of water that coursed through the land, carried on the scent of flowers undying through the air, and other fragrances far to the opposite.The wind carried on through the small country of Japan, passing across the lives of the men and women within it, observing with silent beauty as creatures died and creatures were born, as lives carried on and lives were ceased.It stopped for no one, for nothing, and continued to blow.

The smallest hint of a flavour very familiar to the wind could be smelt within the city of Tokyo, an aroma provocative to few, but foreign to most.To those who knew its twinge, something long since forgotten in them was awakened, by instinct, by reactions uncontrollable.Fists were clenched, muscles were tightened, and hearts were raced till the odour was carried on in the wind.As it passed, sword hilts were slowly unclasped, eyes reverted to their normal patterns, and the minds of the men affected slowly changed back; all the minds, save one.

Himura Kenshin stood outside Kamiya Kaoru's dojo, his hand trembling at his side.His palm was tightly clamped to his sword, his arm unwilling to release it.He stared forward; into nothing but the air which had only seconds ago stirred something within him he had wished to never feel again.He swallowed, the saliva burning its way down his throat, again prompting his mind to recall the scent, again prompting his hand to clench his sword even tighter.

Memories were not things that one could erase, and not even the most talented and dominant Samurais were immune to the power of memories, nor the emotions they could incur.Though this was proven time and time again, men often attempted to hide from them, to fight them, and even to convince themselves they never occurred; yet time and time again, men were proven wrong, and memories were pushed to the surface, pushed beyond the surface.

The scent dwindled in his mind, returning to the barest form of recollection, till it was nothing in his mind but a memory, which was all too similar to another such remembrance that held itself close to his heart.His head shook, the red bundles of hair catching the wind within its clutches, the tears that had formed in his eyes being rolled off his cheek, and into the wind.

Soft footsteps emanated from behind him, as Sagara Sanosuke slowly approached.He had sensed it too, but unlike Kenshin, he had no concept of its true meaning, no idea of the implications it laid before him, and all those he loved."What was that, Kenshin?"

The wind continued on its way through the space-filled void called the sky, carrying with it the question of Sanosuke, delivering with it the scent to be carried to everyone else of the country of Japan, and producing to those within its path the very same question that Sanosuke had just asked.

A small bird chirped in the background of the palatial silence that had enveloped Kenshin; his narrow tunnel of concentration suddenly expanded exponentially, to a point that it was all encompassing, almost reaching beyond the flow of time, to a point that memories old even to Kenshin's mind came back to him… a rush of recollections spawning themselves from bowels deep beyond his own recession.

***

"This will do more than hurt, this will maim, this will injure."A young boy looked up from his shackles with sullen, hollow, defeated eyes, and dared not utter a word, knowing that what his owner had said was true."You still do not wish to tell?"And even though the boys mind was numb with pain, exhaustion and fear, he still held onto the barest knowledge that had stuck with him through the entire ordeal.

"No."He said softly, his hard accent showing through, even on the single word.He was suddenly all the more aware of the pile of flames that burned hatefully behind him.

"As I thought, you worthless piece of shit."The man towering over the boy hit swiftly with a kick, catching the head of the red-haired slave with the full power of the strike.The small child crumpled to the ground, only to be brought up again by the sheath of the man's sword upon his chin."Then I guess you deserve this."The man jerked the boy into the fire behind him with his foot, sending the naked and bloody youngster into the raging mass of flames.

As the youngster burned his screams were drowned out by the crackling of the flames.The man looked down as his eyes reflected the light of the fire into the night sky.His face was expressionless, a rock formation of rigid bone and skin.He slowly wondered why the boy made no move to extract himself out of the fire, instead choosing to just lie there in it; enclosed in unending agony.There came only more screams, more burning, more pain.

Before long, the man's nose was assaulted by a stench unknown to him, a putrid smell much like that of ashes burning.Soon after he realized the source of the aroma, and looked down upon the horribly burned boy with pity.His ears were still deaf to the cries of the tortured child, but even he could not be so inhumane as to avoid the reek of the boy's burning flesh."She isn't worth this… no one is."He spoke to himself, his heart suddenly beating more rapidly as layers upon layers of skin began to worm their way off the boy."That's enough."

With almost no warning, the wind suddenly sprang to life… with such vengeance, such vigour and vigilance as to be almost unnatural.It arose from seemingly nowhere, a sudden spark of current that shot across the ground.It hit the man with all the ferocity of a cyclone, almost pushing him onto the ground, and quickly extinguishing the flames the boy was immersed in.The man brought his hand up to shield his eyes from the dirt pushed on by the wind.His other hand instinctively dropped to the sword that lay attached to his belt.He tried to peer through the rushing air, to find the boy, but all he could see was a beacon of light off to his right.He turned to face the light, which came pouring from out over the horizon, as the sun does in the morning, and as he did so, the wind moved with him, turning as he turned so as to remain in his face, pushing into him with all the force of the heavens."What… the hell?"He exasperated, a tinting of fear singeing upon his voice.

The boy lay whimpering on the ground, the wind cooling his sores, the ground a safe haven from the flames that had enclosed him just moments earlier.His skin rested in puddles all around him, flaked or peeled off from all parts of his body save his face, which he had narrowly managed to keep out of the body of the fire.He began to convulse on the spot, his body refusing to take any more pain for that day.He quickly collapsed in one final spasm of agony; his remaining body sprawled open across the dirt-paved road.The wind continued to blow over him, washing its silent tranquility over the small boy.

The man, meanwhile, pushed forwards against the onslaught of wind, searching for some sort of place where it couldn't reach him.Before he could make any sort of movement towards protection though, it became apparent that he was using all his strength just to hold strong against the wind.The light continually sprung forth from in front of him, growing stronger and stronger with each second."What can that be?"He shouted aloud, finding it the only way to hear himself over the roaring of the wind."It's too late for the sun to be rising."Just as he finished speaking to himself, the wind intensified even more, gusting with such gale as to be bone crushing.It was as the struggle between man and air deepened that the man realized just what this wind really was.

He glanced off to his side, towards a patch of trees not twenty metres away.They rested in absolute calmness, nary a branch swaying or a leaf moving.Fear instantly gripped his heart, as he began to understand that this wind was no normal flurry of air; but was something so controlled, so concentrated that it was meant only for him, and for his slave.This, he presumed, was the wind that God held in His hand, the wind that He used only when He deemed necessary, and the wind that He heeded only for those that needed to feel its revenge.

The man suddenly felt the light ahead of him grow weaker, almost as though something were faintly blocking it out.With what little strength remained in his body after beating the boy that day, he craned his head forward, and gazed into the light, to see if any hope could be spared for his life.There, fixated within the sphere of light, was the figure of a man, clothed in samurai garb and holding a sheathed sword in his hand.His snow-white hair blew with the wind, covering his face, and wrapping itself around his clothing.

This beacon of mystery suddenly mystified the trapped man's mind.For several seconds, neither was touched, and the only thought passing through the wind was the utter serenity of the three beings trapped within it.Then, with grace befitting that of a God, the samurai brought his hand down to his side, and took out his sword.A moment of warning shot out in the other man's mind, and fighting through the sudden fear that clasped his heart, made a mad grab for his sword.There was no chance for defence though, not even a split second of an opening in which the man could stop the attacker.

The samurai moved too quickly for the man to track, almost as quickly as the wind, which held the man in place.He struck with poise unequalled by any other samurai in the country, and with one fatal swipe, severed the man's head from the neck.The decapitated skull fell to the ground, rolling gently for a few feet before coming to a stop in the pile of ashes that had once been his fire.Blood shot out into the air, but was quickly carried away by the wind, out into the sky.The body of the man remained standing, every single muscle frozen in place, just waiting for a message from the brain that had just been detached.

The samurai rose up from the ground behind the body of the man, wiped off the small amount of blood that stained his sword on the ground, and then sheathed the blade back in its place.His eyes drifted to the boy who lay at his feet, the gray-white spheres that served him searching their way around the boy, looking for any signs of life.Slowly, tantalizingly, the boy's chest raised up, then fell back down.The white-haired samurai bent down to the boy, and slowly picked him up in his arms.Being careful not to rattle what little of the child remained, the man also walked over to the body of the man he had killed, and removed the sword from his belt, realizing that between adolescent and sword was a connection that had been rudely interrupted by the slave-owner.

He then set off back from the direction he had come, back into the mountains, back into his home.The light that had previously shone from all around him had disappeared, and the wind that had been so strongly concentrated on the other man had vanished, replaced only by the calming breeze like that of the wind upon the shore of an ocean on a late spring day.The onrushing air continued to push itself over the unconscious child, soothing his sores and giving peace to his tortured body.

***

He walked with a step so light as to be almost weightless, his aura presenting itself in only the most reserved of manner.The air softly pushed itself all around him, swirling around in a path both seemingly random; yet extremely focused.His eyes moved in only one direction, as did the rest of him; straight forward.To an un-acquainted eye, it would seem as if he was a blind man walking down the only path he knew, but to one with senses more acute than an average man's, one would see just how much purpose each step held to this man.

And though his eyes remained fixated on the road ahead, his peripheral vision allowed him to track his position as he waded through the streets of Tokyo.Men, women and children of all likeness strayed away from him, as a man with a sword was feared in this, the peaceful Meiji Era, and one with two was feared even more.A policeman caught sight of him, once, but even he felt the wind that sang at the man's back, and knew that interfering with this man's step could only produce terrible results.So despite any fears or forebodings, the man's progress through the city was unhindered by any.

His clothes were out of style with current trends, but then again, so was he.The tone of his skin said all that needed to be told, but even so, questions arose within the heads of several as he continued his path through the city.

"Look at his eyes."

"How does his hair hold that shape?"

"That smell, where's it coming from?"

"What's he doing with a sword, in Tokyo?Where are the police?"

"The police could do nothing, that much is clear."

The murmurs continued to run rampant through the crowds, till they were the only things that could be heard in his ears.He paid them no heed though, remaining focused on his goal, on his role in the plan that had been lain out, the plan he himself had the only chance of completing.

The scent that had intoxicated the senses of Kenshin and Sanosuke was present as he walked through, almost seeming to carry itself with him.But unlike Kenshin, this man was unaffected by the smell.He had once been the source of such a stench, and after surviving its fiery embrace; he was no longer influenced by it.

A silent gust of wind shot through the street, blowing by his ears with hushed ferocity, an outwardly opaqueness of peace where it seemed there should only be violence.The man stopped.He stood in front of Kamiya Kaoru's dojo, his sky blue eyes fixated on the door before him, and the path he knew he must take.

***

He stepped out into the cold night air, then quickly and loudly shut the door behind him."He almost caught me this time, I'm going to have to be more careful from now on."Okeda said to himself, as he often did, hoping that in hearing the words; he would better follow through on what they said.Really though, he paid no regard to if he was caught or not; in all his naivety, he believed that he could win the battle that would ensue if he were caught.

He pulled his heavy jacket closer to him, hoping to block out the sudden stir of frigid wind.He jogged quickly down the back alley, hoping that he would reach his house before the thieves of the city began to spread out into the neighbourhood."Next time, I'll have to make sure no one sees me."

With a heavy amount of disgust, he remembered that at his house was his wife; with the children, just waiting for him to come home so they could nag and bother him till all ends of the night.In a pathetic display of fear, he headed out onto the main road, and began to look for some sort of all-night restaurant where he could drink some sake, and delay his return home.

Before long though, he realized that he did not know this part of the city very well, and also noticed that a growing number of dark characters had begun to prance about in the alleyways around him.

His eyes darted from building to building, looking for some sort of shelter until he could find his way home.He suddenly became aware of a pair of darkly clothed, tall men walking with long, quick strides behind him.Okeda's heart began to beat heavily as his hands began to tremble."Damnit, I knew I should've left earlier tonight," he said, his voice trembling with each word.

The frosty wind raged all about him, roaring into his ears and riveting his heart to an even faster pace.The pair of beings behind him continued to move faster, sweeping their feet at him in a hideous display of unison.A whistle went off to Okeda's left, but he didn't stop to see if it came from friend or foe; he just continued on in a mad rush.

Just as the pair of bandits behind him were about to pounce, he caught sight of a lit torch at the door of a building.He rushed towards it, and his heart was turned aflutter when he saw that the restaurant had positioned a sworded night security guard at the door of the building.The two thieves behind him started to set off in pursuit, but once they saw the blue-coated guard also had a pistol at his waist, they turned away; searching for new pray.

Okeda hurried beside the guard, and asked how much it would cost to stay the night.The guard smiled and said with gap-toothed greed, "As much as you have."

Okeda knew that he would not have enough money to buy drinks for the entire night, but he also knew that heading home at this time of the night would cost him more than just the money he had in his wallet.He agreed to pay for the night, and with a small tip to the guard, headed into the restaurant; and out of the cold blasts of wind that had been encroaching on him with every passing second.

"Earlier next time."


	2. Heaven Indeed

Resurrections and Rainbows

  


Resurrections and Rainbows

**_ _**

_Chapter 2_

_ _

A flock of birds perched down on the walls of Kaoru's dojo, the same birds that had always perched there, the birds that had forever forewarned the beings inside of the imminently rising sun.This time though, when they sang, their chirp was somehow different from before, slightly off key when related to their other cries, something altered in both what they sang, and the way they sang it. Still, such trivial things went unnoticed by Kenshin, Sanosuke and Myojin Yahiko that morning, as something much more noticeable had also been changed with the mounting of the sun that day.

Sano pulled out his trademark toothpick, placing it gingerly in his mouth and wrestling with it before it found a comfortable spot within his teeth."What do you suppose would make a smell like that, Kenshin?"He asked the red-haired warrior.

Kenshin was silent, his voice lost somewhere between his throat and his lungs.He merely shook his head, walked over to one of the courtyard's trees, slid next to the trunk and then rested his head back, his eyes narrowed in thought._Better just leave him alone; he seems to be thinking a lot._

Yahiko slowly emerged out of the dojo, his clothes in disarray and his eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep.He yawned deeply, his eyes only half open and his steps short and shoddy.His arms slowly uncurled from his shoulders, as he stretched out as many muscles as he could.In his somewhat disoriented state though, he completely missed Sanosuke's presence on the dojo's porch, and promptly knocked into the older man.Sano was shoved forward and fell flat on his face.

"Watch where the hell you're going, you dumb ass!"Sano screamed at his younger sibling as he turned upwards from the ground.

Yahiko, suddenly alerted to Sano's presence, widened his eyes and shouted back, "Why don't you watch where you're standing, you moron!"

"It wouldn't help, you're so short I'd miss you no matter where I stood!"Sano smiled gleefully.

"WHAT?"Yahiko roared, his voice suddenly exceeding any limits put on it by his small body, "Are you implying that because I'm shorter than you, I should kiss your feet?"

Sano rose up to his full height, brought up a fist to his chin, menacingly gazed into the blood-red eyes of Yahiko, smiled, and said, "yes, that's exactly what I'm implying."The two seemed poised for a titanic battle to the end, when a sudden cry came from within the dojo.

"Kenshin, Kenshin!"Kaoru's familiar voice, lined with confusion, ricocheted off the walls, and into the ears of the three males in the courtyard. 

She came to a halt in front of Yahiko and Sano, the angst that had previously hidden itself in her voice suddenly being replaced by annoyance."What are you two up to so early in the morning?"

"He rammed into me from behind, the little freak!"Sanosuke barked.

"It's only because I'm tired, that's all!"Yahiko fired back.

"Then maybe you should get more sleep at night, instead of dreaming about those girls from down the street all night!"

"It's not _those_ girls that keep me up at night, it's Kaoru.She's unbelievably loud beside me."

"Shut UP!"Kaoru screeched over the bickering brother's incessant whines, hoping to reach some sort of intermittent plane of sanity between the two."Would you just be quiet and tell me where Kenshin is?"

Both Sano and Yahiko immediately stopped, fearful of the carnage they knew Kaoru could brew, and of the meals of hers they would be forced to eat should they continue."He started it."Yahiko got in as a final comment.

Just as Sano brought up his fist to pound Yahiko into the ground, Kaoru intervened again, "I don't care.Now where's Kenshin?"Sanosuke slowly lowered his fist, and looked slowly over in Kaoru's direction before nodding off towards the Rurouni Samurai.

A flush of wind arose from the sky around Kaoru, tossing her hair into its grip with a passion all its own.Her eyes were gradually turned towards Kenshin, who, she noticed with a mix of uncertainty and fear, sat gazing up into nothing but the blue expanse of the heavens that stretched on to all corners of the planet.Usually within Kenshin was some sort of awareness of what was going on around him, even when he was entrenched in thought; years of life as an assassin would create such an awareness in anyone.Yet this time, there was no such consciousness in the old Samurai's eyes, no hint towards the impression of all-knowingness that the one's he loved had so easily acquainted with him.Instead there were only questions, thoughts and worries about what he had felt stir inside himself this morning, and what it meant to those very people who he loved so dearly.

Kaoru walked quickly from the dojo to Kenshin's location, her stride suddenly a little more desperate, a little more frightened."Ken-san," she half-shouted at the red-haired warrior, hoping to catch his attention before she reached his position.He made no reply though, merely remained staring into the vast breadth of blue sky and white clouds that stretched on deep into the heavenly body.

As Kaoru came nearer, she slowed down to a pace that bordered on hesitant, her voice also falling much softer, suddenly becoming nothing but a whisper, "Ken-san."

A twinkle of recollection shone forth from the corner of Kenshin's eye, radiating outwards, sparkling back to Kaoru, giving her the faintest hint that he had heard her.Kaoru knelt next to Kenshin, and looked into his face for some sort of response."Kenshin," she said, so softly even she could not hear the words.A dawning came over the old warrior's face, as the slightest tone of response slipped into his eyes.He turned towards Kaoru, and flashed the same confident, childish and cocksure smile that he always had, the one that set her heart at ease even at the most perilous of times.

"Kenshin," she spoke again.

"Kaoru-dono."Kenshin replied softly.

"We… when I woke up this morning, there was a message from the temple Aoshi-san is staying at in Kyoto on my doorstep."Kenshin's smile faded slowly, though his face remained lustrous under the morning sunlight.A tiny flutter of wind caught his hair and threw it into his eyes, shielding them from Kaoru's gaping stare."The note said he'd been in a trance for several days, tossing and turning in a very light sleep."

"Did they say he was sick?"Kenshin asked.

"No," Kaoru began, the wind suddenly cold on her cheek and searing through her clothes."They only said he…"

There suddenly came a loud and powerful knock from the front door of the dojo, rocking its way into the grip of the wind, which carried its message through to Kenshin and Kaoru.Both of their heads instantly whipped towards the door, Kaoru's heart suddenly beating far beyond its normal pace.Kaoru rose up from the ground, and quickly walked towards the door, while Kenshin remained on the ground, watching with silent patience.Both Sanosuke and Yahiko quickly moved forward as well, their curiosity spurred by both the mention of Aoshi's dream, and of the unknown visitor.

The door was leisurely slid open by Karou, revealing a hunched over body clothed in pure white and stung with the stench of sweat.It was obviously a man, by the shape and build of the body, but it wasn't until he spoke that it was revealed what man."Kenshin…san."

"Aoshi!"Kaoru, Sano and Yahiko all shouted out at once, as the two younger men sprinted forward and Kaoru stooped down beside the fallen man.

"Aoshi, what are you doing here!?"Kaoru shouted as she placed her hands on one of his very damp shoulders.As she did so, she realized Aoshi's body was shivering as if he were frozen solid, rocking back and forth too quickly for her eyes to comprehend."Aoshi…" she whispered, her tone voicing her concern.

Just as Sanosuke and Yahiko reached the fallen man, Kenshin slowly pushed himself up from the ground, and slowly trotted off to the other's position."Aoshi let us help you up."Kaoru said, more to the others than Aoshi.With the help of Sano and Yahiko, the task was soon done, and Aoshi was pulled up from the ground.His legs obviously lacked the strength to support him, and it also became glaringly apparent that the partial coma that Kaoru had spoken of had taken its toll on him.His eyes, what little of them could be seen through their partially closed state, were bloodshot and glazed over, as if he had taken some sort of deadly poison, and was now reaping the affects.His hair was over-grown and dirty, a stench like that of a house of rats permeating all around him, it being obvious that he had not washed in well over a week.

Kaoru and Sano tried to coax him to take a few steps forward, but his legs simply refused to obey, remaining rooted in the ground where he, barely, stood.In fact it wasn't until Kenshin came up to him that he seemed to regain enough strength to speak again, albeit very hoarsely."Kenshin, I… I need to talk to you."

Kenshin was silent, but his eyes housed anxiety, and it was obvious he wanted to hear what Aoshi had to say.

The black-haired fighter swallowed deeply, clearing his throat to a point where he could again speak audibly, then raised his voice above the whisper it had previously resided at, "For the past five days, I've rested on the plane of death, the horrors of my own mind fighting with what little consciousness remained in me.For those five days, I knew nothing of anything that happened around me, my senses suddenly useless and weak.Then, last night, I had a dream…" Aoshi was halted in mid-sentence, as he was forced to lower his head and cough for several seconds.When his throat had cleared enough for him to begin again, his voice was raspy with pain, "I had a dream Kenshin, a dream about…"

Memory would serve Kenshin that Aoshi would never finish that sentence, that just as Kaoru was closing the door behind them, and Aoshi was going to complete his thought, a crash went off in palatial silence of the young morning, a clash of metal upon metal that sent birds flying away in all directions, and sent a shiver down Aoshi's already vibrating spine.

Kaoru was suddenly knocked over by a sudden surge of wind; the doors she had been shutting suddenly shoved open by an invisible yet very prevalent source.Heaven, it seemed had decided to turn its best weapon upon the tale Aoshi wished to tell, halting it before it could be told.

And there, in front of the dojo's open doors, were two men, one of whom had a sword drawn, the other having a sort of claw attached to both hands, their eyes more intent on one another than any pair of lovers could possibly be, and a trickle of blood running down the cheek of one man, the shorter of the two.And all around them was the wind, tossing itself about with reckless abandon, curling itself into inhuman circles and ringing dust into the eyes of both men.

Heaven indeed.

* * *

_The early beams of light from a morning not finished dawning streamed out over the road, passing themselves over the travellers that traversed the path and bringing out the creatures of the morning._

_ _

_The boy had not stirred since the man had taken him in his arms.It seemed perfectly at peace in it's blanket, its skin still badly burned from the inferno of the night's flames, yet its face so impeccably innocent as to say that it had not felt a hint of pain all night._

_ _

_The man could hear the far off sounds of conflict behind him, his purpose for going to Kyoto suddenly seeming all the more important.Through some strange twist of fate though, he realized he had perhaps found a better suitor to the role he wished to fill, completely by accident._

_ _

_The two continued on down the vine-infested path, the mountains that already loomed in front of them growing with each passing step, each ongoing moment.Onward they travelled for the entire morning, till the sun had finished its ascension, and was hanging directly over them, glaring down over the entangled over brush that only slightly marred their path.By this time, the older man's legs were sore and tired, a product of the strange stride with which he walked.He slowed his pace, then stopped and stooped under a large tree that shaded the pair from the sun._

_ _

_He gently set the small boy down on the grass, then pulled off his bag from his shoulders, and pulled forth a small bottle of sake from it.He sat down next to the boy; his legs crossed underneath him, and gazed up into the bright morning sky.A few minutes passed, as the silence of the forest came out, and the boy awoke.His heart raced at first, but he soon realized that the torment of the night before was over, and that he was safe now._

_ _

_The child sat up slowly, his body aching and his mind burning into his skull.He wanted to ask the Samurai before him what had happened, but the man cut him off first, "Just listen to it, the way it hums through the heavens, the way it courses through your veins."An opaque silence draped over the two, as the boy was left in awe of the man's delicately spoken words.He wanted to say something, anything, but he could not._

_ _

_"What's your name, boy?"The old man asked, still staring off into the sun._

_ _

_"I… I have no given name, not by your standards at least."_

_ _

_The old man breathed gently, and then responded, "A man with no name is a man born to be a warrior."The boy's head slowly dropped, his vision spinning under the pain in his head."My name is Zeus, since I came from the heavens upon my master.I too, had no name when I was found, but I have inherited many names since then, names that have no meaning to a regular man."The boy didn't understand what the white-haired man had just said, but he knew somehow that he spoke only the truth._

_ _

_"You, you will be known as Cronos… since I came to you at just the right time.Sound good?"The boy was speechless, but the title seemed fitting to him."Where are you from, Cronos?Your accent is not from any part of Japan I've ever heard before."_

_ _

_"I…" Cronos began, "I'm… from, America, or at least that's what my owner told me.He says I have the dialect of a poor American beggar."_

_ _

_"Yes, that sounds about right, though I've never heard an American speak Japanese before.Why are you here then, amongst us?"_

_ _

_"That man you killed, he said he found me in the rubble of an American ship when I was about five years old.He said he caught me trapped within a woman's arms, her body floating on the shore."_

_ _

_Zeus' interest was caught by the boy's words, and he slowly turned his head to face Cronos."How did you know I'd killed him?You were unconscious by the time I'd finished him."_

_ _

_The boy's head dropped again, and then he replied sullenly, "That man hated me with his entire heart, and until that heart stopped beating, he would continue to hate me.Therefore, he must be dead, or else I would still feel his hate."_

_ _

_Cronos turned his head up and looked into Zeus' eyes, the purity and truth behind the small blue orbs becoming unmistakable.Neither spoke for a while, as they both scanned into each other's souls for the information they sought.Finally Zeus turned away, and stared back into the heavens, then opened his mouth again, "Do you like the outside, Cronos?"The boy nodded, and Zeus continued on, "Good, because you'll be seeing a lot of them with me.You'll learn to love the wind, too, Cronos, because it will flow through your body like the air in your lungs.You will love the trees, the leaves, the mountains, and everything that the wind touches, you will love it all, and it will be your servant in return."_

_ _

_The redheaded young man nodded as Zeus spoke, suddenly finding meaning within the man's words.It wasn't long before Zeus spoke again, "Have you ever used a sword, Cronos?"_

_ _

_"…No."_

_ _

_"You will, boy, you will."_

_ _

_Zeus pulled himself up, and stared off towards the mountains in front of them."Come, Cronos, we must reach the mountains before the sun falls, so I can have my meat for the day, and we can treat your burns."Cronos stood up as well, and pulled up Zeus' bag along with him.Zeus then walked out from under the shade of the tree, began down the path headed for the mountains, and Cronos followed him._

_ _

_A small set of birds set down where the pair had been, frantically searching for some dropped food, finding none.They chirped to signify a "No" to their brethren, and then flew off towards Tokyo, to find a house to spend the day upon._

_ _

_* * *_

_ _

From the moment he'd set foot in Tokyo, Cronos had had trouble getting around.For the most part, he was already at least six inches taller than the men, and usually a foot taller than the women, which made it very hard to go about unnoticed.There was also the topic of police, which were either afraid of him, or uncaring that he carried two swords, which was long since banned under the new Meiji government.In any case, he stuck out like a whale amongst a school of catfish, and there seemed little he could do about it.

It didn't particularly bother him that he was so noticeable, except for the fear of an attack from the Honoo no Satsujin's, which could prove fatal to a number of bystanders.As it turned out though, they were honourable enough to attack him out of the main street, merely assaulting him in front of the Kamiya Dojo.The attacker turned out to be the dumbest of Apollo's trainees, yet even so, he was more than a deadly match for the red-haired young man.

After Cronos had followed Aoshi towards the Hitokiri Battousai's position, he had felt the presence of a follower tracking his position, but had done little about it, merely remaining on his toes in case of an impromptu attack.Just seconds after Aoshi had entered the dojo though, Cerberus decided to strike.As his name implied, his fury came from the gates of hell, and so did his stupidity.

Quickly breaking the first command of any assault, he quickly made his position known to Cronos by roaring gently, just under the breeze of the wind, which carried the hint of his attacker straight to the red-haired man.Cronos whipped towards Cerberus and quickly withdrew one of his swords, just in time for Cerberus to lunge at Cronos with the pair of steel claws that had been surgically attached to the man's hands.Cronos easily sidestepped the vicious swipe, and brought his sword up from the ground with a quick slice that Cerberus didn't fully manage to dodge.The sharp edge of the blade caught him on the cheek, and instantly sent blood dripping down the bald-headed assassin's face.

Cronos landed, and instantly the wind began to push itself from behind him, towards Cerberus, the murderous look in the short man's eyes growing stronger as more resistance was pushed against him.The door to the dojo was still open slightly, but it seemed as though Aoshi had still captivated the attention of those inside, the battle between warriors on the outside had not yet been noticed.

Just as Cronos was looking for a way to get the attention of the Battousai, or Aoshi, Cerberus shot away from the point where the wind had been collecting against him.As quickly as Cronos realized Cerberus had escaped the wind's hold, he brought his sword back, and then whisked it through the air in the direction of his enemy.A sudden and deadly entrapment of air rushed towards Cerberus' head, at speeds too quick for any normal human to dodge; but Cerberus was no regular human, as he quickly ducked under the razor-like pocket of wind, and, with a powerful thrust of his legs, fired towards Cronos' knees, his claws outstretched and his mouth salivating from the expected kill.

Before the extended hands of Cerberus' could reach Cronos though, one of the redheaded man's feet was brought up, catching Cerberus squarely in the jaw, and sending him soaring through the air, before landing with a thud on the ground some distance away.The attack did little to hurt the beast, but did halt him long enough for Cronos to concentrate.The wind suddenly changed direction, and instead of pushing itself in one course, it began to swirl all about, the dirt and grass beneath the two combatants suddenly pulling itself up and around, the door of the dojo being blasted open by the force of the wind.

The barrier between the fighting opponents and the peaceful inhabitants of the dojo suddenly brought down, utter chaos ensued.Sanosuke rushed out from behind Aoshi, Kaoru tried desperately to get up from the ground after being knocked down by the door, and Cronos began to scream out, "Battousai!Quickly, help me defeat this beast!"Kenshin merely stood still, his eyes and feet fixated on the two fighters, neither of whom let the other out of his sight.

Fear quickly arose in Cronos' heart, as he knew that he would be unable to protect all of Kenshin's friends without the Battousai's help.A few tense moments passed, as the wind continued to force itself on, and then finally Cronos yelled out again, "Rurouni Kenshin, draw your sword!"For a split moment, Cronos turned his eyes towards Kenshin, to see if the warrior had drawn his blade, and in that split second, Cerberus stroke.

The short, brightly clothed, and bald man pounced away from the ground, towards Sanosuke and Yahiko, his progress moving too quickly for the two younger men to track.Cronos shot after the man with the cut across his cheek, but moved too slowly, the deed had been done.Luckily for both Sano and Yahiko though, Cerberus saw something within the eyes of the Battousai, and decided not to merely kill the cross-scarred warrior, but to play with him.Instead of simply slicing and dicing the two young men with his razor-sharp claws, he pulled short of the legendary Hitokiri, expelled a long breath of some foul-smelling gas, and then brought both hands up to his mouth.

"Get down!"Cronos screamed, his voice overpowering the shrieks of both Kaoru and Aoshi, who lay on the ground, pleading for Kenshin's attention.But all the cries in the world couldn't have prepared Kenshin for the flames that suddenly sprung forth in the air, enveloping themselves around Kenshin, and causing him to turn away from Cerberus, his eyes burning from the heat.The flames quickly caught a hold of Kenshin's clothing, igniting them with sparkling bushes of heat and light.Kenshin was swiftly on the ground, trying to put out the flames that now covered his body, while Sanosuke rushed towards Cerberus, screaming a battle cry and extending his broken fist.

Before any of the Kenshin Gumi could act though, Cronos had already sprung, and with him had pounced the vengeance of the wind, which quickly extinguished the flames that hadn't caught onto Kenshin, and blown Cerberus away from the redheaded warrior.Cerberus landed several feet away from Kenshin and Cronos, yet still his presence loomed over the others as the sun hangs over the skies during the summer.As Kenshin began to roll on the ground, with Sanosuke helping, Cronos quickly faced his enemy, sword at his waist, directed towards the bald fighter.

The flames on Kenshin's clothes were quickly put out, and for one, agonizingly long, tension ridden moment, not a single soul showed signs of movement, except for the steady and laboured breathing of Aoshi, who still lay on the ground, a puddle of sweat and fear.Finally Cronos spoke, and his voice was calm as ever, "Leave now, Cerberus, or else you will die."

Kaoru finally got to her feet, only to back up against the wall, her entire body trembling from the invisible strands of pressure between Cronos and Cerberus, her gaze shifting between the two squared off fighters.Another moment of silence crept on, and as it did, Kaoru's stare slowly began to lock upon Cronos, her heart thudding ever harder as she found herself gawking at him.His long, springy red hair covered one of his eyes, but the other was visible to only her and Cerberus, and both of them saw the same thing.His eye was shining, glowing a bright white like a star that had neared the Earth.There was no trace of a pupil, no character or feeling within that eye, just the pure light that emanated from within the man.It was as soon as she saw this that she knew Cronos was wrong, and what he was doing here was wrong as well.She wanted to cry out in fear and confusion, but she could not, because the light would not let her.Her legs began to quiver again, but before she could fall, Cerberus snapped the tension, and screamed aloud.

The air all around Cerberus suddenly burst into flames, almost as though it had not been air at all, but a flammable substance just waiting for that first spark.Everyone's hearts were instantly tightened, as they had no idea of what had just happened, everyone's except for Cronos that is.In fact, if anything, his body suddenly relaxed heavily, and he even put his sword away.Confusion quickly ran amok through Kaoru's mind as she tried to determine not only how Cerberus had lit the air ablaze, but why this strange man with the even stranger eyes seemed so relaxed at seemingly the point of climax between the two.As the wind pushed the newly created flames out though, the second answer to Kaoru's burning questions was quickly answered, as it appeared, somehow, Cerberus had managed to escape the ball of fire he had enveloped himself within, and had disappeared from the confines of the dojo.

The wind instantly fell down to nothingness, and the only sound that could be heard was that of Cronos' blade being placed into its sheath.Kaoru quickly caught a glimpse of Cronos' eye again, and to her horror, she saw that it was different, that once again it was a regular eye, with all the attributes that such an eye holds.Some sort of a trigger went off inside her, and she was forced to recall a time when Kenshin's eyes had changed like that, transformed into that of something not human, only to turn back.

_He's the same as Kenshin,_ she realized, the voice inside her not willing to admit that the terrible, blinding white eyes that had come from this other man in any way resembled the things that Kenshin stood for."Ken…shin," she gasped softly, her throat suddenly stinging her and her vision suddenly becoming cloudy with the same white light that had come from Cronos."Kenshin…" she whispered again, as she tried to step towards the old Rurouni she had come to so dearly trust, only to find the world around her suddenly fade out, and her legs to give way underneath her.

Kaoru collapsed onto the grass of her dojo, as Cerberus leapt from rooftop to rooftop, heading back to his rendezvous point, and confident in one very important piece of information.

* * *

_Okeda awoke from his place on the floor in a pile of disgust, another night of his laboured drinking paying off handsomely.The saliva that had formed in a pool by the corner of his mouth stuck to his chin as he rose up, only to be brushed off by the back of his hand.He couldn't tell if the bitter taste in his mouth was blood, or something else, but he had an almost instant urge to rid himself of it._

_ _

_His entire body was racked with soreness, his head throbbing and his bad hand cramping terribly.He searched around for a couple seconds, hoping to find Seru, or at least one of his daughters, before realizing he wasn't at home, and he wasn't going to find anyone to help him.He pulled at one of the westerner-style chairs, and yanked himself up, then groggily went to get some water to help wake himself up._

_ _

_As he pulled open the door, the rays of the sun smouldered into his eyes, forcing him to close them, and consequently, stub his toe on a stray water bucket.After cursing the piece of wood for several seconds, and rubbing his foot, he picked up the pail and headed to the well.Neither the beauty of his mistress' house, nor the sheer enormity of it, ever ceased to amaze Okeda, but then again, he was an easily amazed person._

_ _

_He crossed nearly fifty metres of courtyard before he reached the water well, which was so large that it actually had two separate places to draw water from.He quickly filled up his bucket, and then quickly finished the cool water, spilling much of it on himself.He wiped his chin then headed back into his house, where he changed into a fresh pair of servant's clothes Yolanda had left him, then picked up the money she'd left for him, and headed towards the streets of Kyoto for his regular work._

_ _

_As he was heading out of the house, he saw a pile of empty sake bottles, left over from the night before, and decided to leave the mess for a couple of Yolanda's servants.As he was heading out, he thought he saw one, the tall, fair-skinned boy he used to see, but it turned out to be one of her children, who regarded Okeda as a tutor for Yolanda in the art of handwriting."I guess what I do with her is a form of art…" he said aloud with a slight chuckle, almost not remembering that her son didn't know what he really did do._

_ _

_Only slightly embarrassed, he walked past the strange look the son gave him, and finished his path out of the house.A few stragglers were in the street, but he was nowhere near the market, or any place of business, and so he was left to his own thoughts, hollow as they may be, as he trotted towards his office._

_ _

_It didn't take long for him to remember just how strange Yolanda had been acting the night before, and it took him only a bit longer to remember why.The fact that her husband hadn't been seen in two days had seemed to weigh heavily on her heart, and she seemed to be even more distant the previous night, almost as though she didn't expect him back."Sure, he was a samurai, and sure it's only been a year since the Meiji era began, but there's no one who wanted to kill him, at least, not from what I remember her telling me about him."A couple vagrants on the street gave Okeda a strange look, but he just continued to speak to himself."I'll have to try and console her tonight, if he still hasn't come home, or else it won't seem I'm doing my job."_

_ _

_He carried his feet heavily, before finally coming to a stop in front of the small, out of the way restaurant he worked at.As he walked in, he greeted the head waitress, whom he worked with, and then headed to the back to throw an apron on, before heading back to the front in the rare event a customer walked in.He stood at the front counter, and stared off into the sky, despite the pain his hangover caused him._

_ _

_Time slowly passed, as it always seemed to do for him while he worked, and he began to daydream about what he could buy with the extra money he was earning from sleeping with Yolanda.Before he could find a comfortable mind-groove though, a loud crash sprung up from outside, and he rushed out to find out the source._

_ _

_There, in the middle of the street, were three teenage kids, all with wooden swords, beating on an old, darkly clothed man, who made almost no movement to protect himself.A couple of the other men who owned stores around the area quickly moved in and pulled the kids off of the old man, but they just screamed for the owner's to let them go, claiming that "the man is the work of the devil!" And that he "has to be killed!"_

_ _

_The owners didn't really care what they screamed though, and quickly cracked the wooden swords over their knees, and walls, before telling them to scram.At this point, Okeda moved in, and helped the man dressed in black rise to his feet.The man's body was cool, almost like the water that Okeda had drunk in the morning, despite the heat of the sun, and his dark attire.Okeda could see little of his face, but what he could see was covered in black hair, his beard covering almost his entire face.His hair was far too long and bushy for his face, but it seemed as though the man had no choice in his washing habits.The man's skin was dark, much darker than most, and the rough way in which he moved showed he had obviously spent a lot of time under the heat of the sun."Are you okay?"Okeda asked, his voice soft, but his grip harsh as he tried to pull the man to his feet._

_ _

_After several tugs, the man came to his feet, but still seemed dizzy and unsure of his surroundings.The other storeowners were also around, in a circle, and they all heard the gibberish the man sprouted out of his bloodied and broken lips._

_ _

_"So much fire, so many flames.There's no way I can put them all out!"The man began to thrash about in Okeda's arms, forcing him to drop the older man to the ground again, where he writhed, as if in pain."SO MANY FLAMES!"He screamed out, his voice ruff and dry._

_ _

_"Ha," a couple of the store managers chuckled, "probably just some old crazy samurai who fell off his rocker."They all gradually drifted away as the man began to repeat himself, thrashing about, all but Okeda._

_ _

_Okeda stuck around for a couple more minutes, making sure the man couldn't be helped any more.Just when it seemed it was useless and Okeda was about to leave, the man's words suddenly changed."Why are you on flames?"_

_ _

_Okeda whipped towards the man, and asked, "Are you talking to me?"_

_ _

_The man nodded, his breathing finally catching up to him, before he went on, "You're on flames, your hair is a pile of burnt rubble.You… you're the cause of the flames."_

_ _

_"What?What are you talking about?"_

_ _

_"Why did you cause them?Why did you cause the flames?"_

_ _

_"I didn't cause any fires, what the fuck are you talking about?!?"Okeda shrieked, his heart racing as he tried to understand what the man meant._

_ _

_"I can never put you out, never in all my wildest dreams!"The man shrieked back, his hand rising up to Okeda, almost menacingly, though also peacefully, weakly._

_ _

_"Fuck you!"Okeda shouted, kicking the man in the stomach, in fear, and then taking a step back._

_ _

_Though the man gasped in pain, he continued."You're the one who starts the wind too, though.You're the one who will fight the fires with the powers of the heavens."_

_ _

_Okeda just slowly backed away, and headed back into his restaurant._

_ _

_"You'll be torn apart by them, and you know it!You can't survive the flames if you don't trust in heaven!"_

_ _

_Okeda closed the door behind him as he entered the restaurant, then slumped, exhausted for some reason, on the nearby wall.He gasped several times, and then groaned, "Hmph…. Heaven indeed."_


	3. Unbeatable

Resurrections and Rainbows

**_Resurrections and Rainbows_**

**_ _**

_Chapter 3_

_ _

"Himura Kenshin," Cronos spoke, his voice silencing all thoughts of questions or mumbles of uncertainty, "Hitokiri Battousai, cross-scarred Rurouni.You have many names, Shinta, but there's always one name that will hold itself closest to your heart."

"Shinta?"Sanosuke, Yahiko and Aoshi all exasperated at once.Kenshin stood still, facing the other red-haired warrior that loomed tall over all other parties present.

One by one, all heads were fixated upon Kenshin, and before long he felt almost compelled to speak."And how might you have come across that name?"

"That, is another tale, another story to tell around a night-time fire, nothing more," Cronos almost chuckled, a grin slowly spreading across his round, flushed face.Kenshin's visage was unmoving, his eyes gave nothing to anyone; they were merely there, staring lifelessly into this new arrival's face.

A gentle wind passed between the two, as if attempting to cut the not so visible tension locked in-between them.It proved fruitless though, and Kenshin's stare remained, holding firm against an invisible enemy.

Kaoru began wrestling on the ground, but no one moved to her, no one even looked in her direction, until Cronos spoke again."Some call you unbeatable, a weapon so cunning and powerful that not even one of the most exacting killer's in Japan's history, Makato Shi-Shi-O, could defeat you.Unbeatable."

Instead of replying to Cronos' praises, Kenshin merely directed his speech to Yahiko."Aid Kaoru off the ground, then help her get inside, she'll probably need to rest."

Yahiko, a bit stunned at being spoken to during such a tension-ridden moment, stammered in his reply."Y--ye--yeah."He walked, his eyes still on Cronos, towards Kaoru, almost tripping over his own feet in the process.By the time he finally reached her, she was already on her knees, shaking her head, and trying to remember where she was.

Slowly the memory of a sky full of flames had invaded its way into her mind, and she was forced to quell down the sudden rise of fear within her heart."Kaoru-san," Yahiko's soft, chided voice spoke in her ear, "Kaoru, give me your hand, I'll help you up."

"Yahiko?"She murmured, a strange lump cornered in the back of her throat preventing her voice from reaching its usual volume.

"Kaoru," Yahiko replied, his voice also quiet but somewhat reassuring, "let me help you up."He extended his hand, and Kaoru groggily clasped it, as the young man helped his teacher to her feet."Let me get you inside, quickly."

Kaoru's feet were numb and asleep underneath her, and she had no intention of going anywhere, but the wooziness in her head, and the fleeting lights in her eyes told her to listen to her student's commands.Slowly she made her way towards the dojo, through the staggering haziness of her mind, a single question permeating itself to be asked."Kenshin," she began, her head suddenly turning towards the swirly-eyed samurai, her tracks stopped for a single moment, "are you alright?"

Kenshin's back remained to Kaoru, and his eyes never once left Cronos' but he responded quickly and surely."Yes."

Kaoru smiled faintly, her entire body still tingling on the border of sensation, as she again turned away and headed into the dojo, leaving Cronos, Kenshin, Sanosuke, and a crumpled up Aoshi in the courtyard.

Nothing but the gentle brush of a faint morning wind stirred through the four bodies, not a pair of eyes moving from the targets they had chosen.Cronos continued to grin, Kenshin's face remained rigid and frozen, and Sanosuke became increasingly agitated, as he waited for something to be said by either of the two red-haired warriors.Before long the anxiety overwhelmed him, and, raising his fist, he shouted aloud."Would someone say something?Please!"He didn't notice it, but he was grinding his teeth, and down his forehead a pair of sweats beads ran, glinting under the sun.

Even through this sudden outburst though, there was only silence between Kenshin and Cronos, though finally Aoshi rose from the ground, and spoke once again, his voice much clearer than before."You were there, too, weren't you?"It took everyone a while to realize that he was speaking to Cronos, whose smile had suddenly faded, and whose eyes were now grave and serious.

"Where?"He asked.

"In my dream… that dream."

Cronos said nothing in reply, but his hand clenched into a fist, and his voice suddenly fell, dropping to almost inhuman levels."Then you saw it too, didn't you?You saw the flames."

Aoshi's eyes instantly widened, and Kenshin's body tightened up even quicker, while Sanosuke was left in a relative black-hole, trying to determine what Cronos' words had meant."What goddamn flames?"He asked, the tone of his voice calmer, but still very confused.

Cronos turned back towards Kenshin, and said in a quiet and serene voice, "You're wondering what it means, aren't you?"The question was obviously rhetorical, but Kenshin nodded slowly nonetheless, his hand shaking at his side."That's why I'm here Kenshin, to tell you, the unbeatable one, what that dream meant."

Though it had not been plainly stated, Cronos had put a proposal out to Kenshin, and it was up to the old Rurouni as to whether or not to take it. Though he sensed no misgivings on Cronos' part, he still had lingering doubts about the way the young man had appeared, and just how he knew about the dream that had not only haunted Aoshi the night before, but also Kenshin.

At length, Kenshin replied, though only with another question."Why do you call me that, unbeatable I mean."

Cronos eyes thinned, and his brow became rigid in thought as he answered."Because where I come from, there is a different meaning to the word, something deeper than what a common man sees in it."

There was little doubt in Kenshin's mind that the young man before him spoke the truth, though there was a whole lot more doubt in him that the boy's intentions were honorable.Another query quickly entered Kenshin's stream of thought, and he just as quickly asked it."What else are you here for?"

Cronos' grin returned in a flash, and with no hesitation he answered, "To keep the dream within the confines of our minds."

"Our?"Sanosuke whispered to himself, realizing that not only had Aoshi dreamt this troubling visioin, but so had Kenshin, and apparently, this other man had as well.

"Aoshi-san, what do you say?"Kenshin asked of the black-haired fighter.

Aoshi had remained fixated on Cronos the entire time, his eyes and mouth wide as if afraid to move.But when he spoke, he did so in a clear and confident voice, answering to Kenshin, "Let's listen to what he has to say, at least.If he can help clarify what I saw last night, it will help a great deal."

Kenshin merely nodded, and slowly his body unclasped the grip it had laid upon itself, as his hands finally fell weakly to his sides again.Aoshi remained staring at Cronos, who walked forward with a step slow and sure.A gentle, warm breeze sifted through the courtyard, as Sanosuke helped Aoshi turn around and head into the dojo.Cronos followed behind the two, under the watchful eye of Kenshin, who waited for the other three to pass before following their path into the building.

Just as they were nearing the dojo's steps, Yahiko came rushing out of the structure and shouted, "Alright, what's going on here?"

Sano, startled by the younger boy's sudden appearance, shouted back angrily, "Too much stuff for you to understand!Baka."

"WHAT?"Yahiko screamed, as the two instantly began to restart the fight that had been interjected just a while before."What did you call me!?"Yahiko rushed up to Sano's face, while Aoshi merely grumbled something underneath his breath.Sano merely laughed, and then began his way up the stairs again.Yahiko wouldn't let the insult go though, and cried yet again, "Well, WHAT WAS IT!?!"

Sanosuke's face suddenly became serious, and he raised his free hand, as a fist, to Yahiko's jaw before opening his mouth to reply."What do you thin---"

Before he could finish though, Kenshin's voice shot out, suddenly booming with authority and more than a timid tone of annoyance, "Yahiko-san!Sano-san!Please, we don't have time for this!"He brushed his way past Cronos, and then almost shoved Sano out of the way, taking his place in aiding Aoshi up the stairs."Wait out here until we're done talking."His voice left nothing to argue, though both Sano and Yahiko were too frightened to even consider doing so.

_Strange, Sano thought, __I wonder why Kenshin's acting so uptight today.Maybe this fight was really important or something.__Ah well, makes no difference to me."Come here Yahiko," he almost whispered slyly, his hands quickly reaching out to pummel the Kammiya Kasshin Ryu student.Yahiko darted away, and the two began to fight once again, oblivious to the graveness of the matters that were to be discussed within the dojo._

As the two young men fought outside, and the three older ones made their way inside, Kaoru laid on her back in her room, her head still swimming within itself, her stomach still queasy, and her hands still trembling.Though she stared up towards the ceiling she had seen countless times before, there seemed to her a sudden change in the room itself, as though a million new multi-colored lamps had been placed all around, and the entire room had been brightened with countless different colors and shades.She determined that her stomach and mind were playing tricks on her, though she couldn't shake the feeling that she had almost been devoured by some sort of color-changing monster, and was now residing painlessly in its stomach.Even after putting down that foolish idea, she had the lingering thought that she was in something, part of something that was comprised of nothing but beautiful mixes of blues, greens, yellows and reds.Slowly she closed her eyes and fell into a very shallow sleep, the image of a confident Kenshin, smiling gorgeously floating around the superficial recesses of her mind, the hope that breakfast would be ready for her when she awoke also milling about.

Meanwhile, Kenshin, Cronos, and Aoshi all headed into Kenshin's bedroom, where they quickly sat down in a triangle on the floor, closed the doors, and laid their swords at their sides; except Aoshi, who carried no weapon at that time.Despite the brightness of the morning sun, the room was shrouded in the darkness that consumed the three men's minds.Their movements were grave and serious, and though none of them dared speak a word till the others were ready, angst was layered thick in the warm, almost damp air.

Outside, a flock of birds pushed with all their might against the invisible enemy that halted their path.Try as they might though, the wind held them in check, unbeatable by even the strongest of their kindred.

* * *

_A thin mountain air hung all around Cronos and Zeus.Fitting, since they were residing now in the mountains that Zeus called home, sitting in a small wooden shack that had obviously been passed down through the centuries, as Zeus took off what little of Cronos clothing remained, and wrapped him in sterile bandages._

_ _

_Cronos flinched repeatedly as Zeus applied some kind of sticky ointment to his burns, many of which had peeled off the first layer of skin, fewer of which had gone straight through the second.Though the ointment stung as it was applied, the thin, white dressing Zeus applied afterwards seemed to calm the pain, and stimulate the remaining nerves within Cronos' body._

_ _

_It took a little over half an hour, and the sun was now behind the mountains that bordered around Zeus' home, but when the makeshift doctor had finished treating his patient, Cronos felt much better than he had before, and a bit more rested, as though the medication had rejuvenated his very bones._

_ _

_"How's that?"Zeus asked lightly, his eyes looking straight into Cronos', the smallest twinge of concern evident in his voice._

_ _

_"Much better," Cronos replied, managing a small smile._

_ _

_"Good," Zeus answered back standing to his full height and turning his face rigid, "then come with me outside, I want to talk to you there."_

_ _

_The older, white-haired man twisted on his heel and headed out of the small room, leaving the door open behind him.Cronos slowly rose himself up from the stool he had been resting on, followed Zeus out of the door, and headed out into the setting sky._

_ _

_The two were perched on top of a small plateau, which was encircled by a ringlet of fairly small mountains, the larger brothers of which were off to the west.The small path out of the east through which they had traveled was the only easily accessible route to the plateau, which was high enough to create a dangerous climb for any.Cronos had nearly fallen several times on his journey up the shallow side of the cliff, but Zeus had always been there to help him to his feet.Besides the cabin which was obviously to be Cronos' new home (very unlike the mansion he had previously been residing in), there was also a small barn, in which a single, scrawny, brown horse was nested, as well as several chickens, and even a very large cow.Cronos had no idea how Zeus had managed to get them up this high, or even why he kept them, but he decided that all those questions would soon be answered._

_ _

_Zeus was standing beside a large round stone that went as high as his waist, to which he pointed and instructed Cronos to "sit down" on.Cronos quickly obeyed and looked up at the Samurai, finding the old man's gaze being engrossed upon the sun, whose rays barely extended upon the confines of one of the surrounding mountains.The stars were coming into view above, and through small and subtle gusts of wind, they twinkled down on the two men below, spreading their living light over the plateau._

_ _

_"Do you feel that Cronos?Do you feel what the air holds for us tonight?"Zeus was speaking as though Cronos was not there, and was merely speaking to a spirit from long ago."Do you feel it?"_

_ _

_There was silence for a second, and Cronos realized Zeus wanted a reply, so he followed his masters gaze into the sky, and thought for a moment before replying, "I feel the wind on my face, and I feel the ground beneath my feet."_

_ _

_"Yes, that's what I felt at one time too, long ago.Soon though, Cronos-san, you will begin to feel many things beside the air and the earth.You will feel the soul of the wind, the lives it touches, and everything inside it.This is Tengoku o Mamoru Hito. (Defender of the Heavens)"_

_ _

_"Ten…tengoku o Mamoru… Hito?"Cronos asked, looking up to Zeus once again._

_ _

_"Yes, Tengoku o Mamoru Hito.That is the form of Budo that I use, the style of attack that has been passed down over several centuries.It is designed to use that soul of the wind, and the soul of the blade, to defeat one's opponent."_

_ _

_"Use, the wind?"Cronos asked again, curiosity straining his weak voice._

_ _

_"The wind is the center of the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito, it is the source of almost all its power, and creates warriors more powerful than any regular human could ever be."_

_ _

_"But, how can someone **use the wind?"**_

_ _

_Zeus turned to face Cronos at that question, and smiled, "That, is the key to the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito."_

_ _

_Cronos face was twisted in confusion, but he could not say that Zeus seemed to be lying in the slightest, in fact, he picked up only a voice of truth from the older man.Rather than confuse the boy more, Zeus turned towards the sky again, and continued on._

_ _

_"The centerpiece of the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito is the Shi ni Ken, Shi ni Kaze, Shi ni Dochira technique (Death by Sword, Death by Wind, Death by Both).It is the succession technique, and ultimate mastery of the Budo form."_

_ _

_"What is this succession technique then?"Cronos asked hesitatingly, scared he was not supposed to ask that question._

_ _

_"That," Zeus responded, "is something you'll have to find out for yourself."Cronos returned another, even more confused look, but Zeus cut him off before he could ask a question._

_ _

_"You see," he began, his voice suddenly falling much deeper and more serious, "the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito is designed to adapt to the various different opponents that it faces, changing and conforming to beat the best of the best, and to thrive where other techniques fail."_

_ _

_Cronos nodded slowly, making sure he understood Zeus' words._

_ _

_"Hence, the Shi ni Ken, Shi ni Kaze, Shi ni Dochira technique has only one rule.That is that the technique, whatever the next lineage of the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito line may chooses it to be, must use both the sword and the wind in the attack, and must use them at the same time."_

_ _

_"Both wind, and sword?"Cronos asked, astounded._

_ _

_Zeus whipped his head towards Cronos, and his eyes were suddenly alive like the stars above, shining white orbs of power and mystery.Out of them shot a blinding white light like that that Cronos' master had once seen.Cronos was shocked back in his seat, agape at the sudden ashen color that spread forth from Zeus' eyes.Yet, he was not afraid, though he somehow thought he should be.Instead he was merely intrigued, his mind captivated by whatever was inside the white-haired, and white-eyed man that stood before him."Yes," Zeus said slowly, "both wind and sword.Together, it is said, one day they will create an attack that is unbeatable, even by a God."_

_ _

_"Un…beatable."Cronos said, his mouth open and his mind awestruck._

_ _

_"Yes," Zeus agreed, nodding, his eyes still shining white like the stars, "unbeatable."_

_ _

_Cronos found himself suddenly pressed to turn away from those eyes, as though they were cutting through his soul and searching the deepest recesses of his body.He did so painfully, choosing to stare at the rock he was sitting on, his heart racing as he tried to determine what had just gone on.Instead though, Zeus continued on, and as he spoke, Cronos looked up at him again, finding that the white light had again been replaced by Zeus' regular, probing black eyes."My Shi ni Ken, Shi ni Kaze, Shi ni Dochira technique uses the wind as a mere diversion to the real attack, which is commonly known as a Gatotsu, which is also combined with another sword attack that you will learn yourself eventually."_

_ _

_"The Gatotsu?"Cronos asked, his voice suddenly lively and wondering.Zeus opened his mouth to speak, but Cronos cut him off."Kina-sama, my former master, the one that you killed, always spoke of a man that used the Gatotsu very powerfully, a man who works as Shinsengumi.Sait…Saito…"_

_ _

_"Saitou Hajime," Zeus said, completing Cronos' thought."Yes, his Gatotsu technique is one of the best, but nothing compared to my own, since he lacks the speed to use it effectively."_

_ _

_"Kina-sama said he was one of the most powerful warriors during the war in __Kyoto__, and that only a couple men could ever have matched his Gatotsu."Cronos added objectively._

_ _

_Zeus smiled at what appeared to be the boy's innocence."Yes, by normal men's standards, he is quite a formidable fighter, but within a couple of years Cronos, you will be able to defeat such a man."_

_ _

_Cronos found himself quite speechless at the blatancy of Zeus' statement, and at the message it contrived."You… you mean…"_

_ _

_"Yes," Zeus answered, smiling slightly and nodding, "you are to be my student.You are to be the next Tengoku o Mamoru Hito, and one day, you will have your own Shi ni Ken, Shi ni Kaze, Shi ni Dochira."_

_ _

_The small, red-headed, bandaged boy wasn't sure how to respond to what had just been said, but he smiled widely, and nodded._

_ _

_"Here," Zeus said powerfully, whipping his hand to his side and grasping a sword that lay on his belt, "you'll need this."He pulled the sword, sheathe and all, and then handed it to Cronos.The boy used both hands to hold the heavy weapon, and he stared at it in awe."I found this in the possession of your former master, and since it has English lettering on the sheathe and handle, I decided it must belong to you."_

_ _

_Cronos looked over the sword and saw the letters that his new master spoke of, but he could not make sense of them.Yet still he knew that somehow the sword **did belong to him, and that his old owner had stolen it from him long ago.**_

_ _

_"That sword is of incredible craftsmanship, it is almost the lightest sword I've ever felt.And you'll need it, because tomorrow you start your training."_

_ _

_Cronos nodded, but somehow he didn't feel right.He had a longing inside himself to keep that sword clean, and to not ruin it with simple training use.Though he felt he had already asked much of Zeus that day, he questioned softly, "If it's all the same to you, Zeus-sensei, I'd like to use a different sword for training.This one seems too fair to ruin before it's needed."_

_ _

_Zeus looked, for a short while, into Cronos' eyes, and then agreed."Yes, that won't bother me, it is a wondrous sword."_

_ _

_Cronos smiled again, and answered, "Thank you very much, Zeus-sensei."_

_ _

_Zeus bobbed his head up and down again, and then said, patting Cronos' back gently, "let's go back inside now, we'll eat and then sleep in preparation for tomorrow."_

_ _

_The two headed back into the small hovel as the last rays of sunlight disappeared, and the wind was flying around in circles all about the plateau and the surrounding mountains, as though on guard for the night._

_ _

_As Cronos ate a strange tasting, yet filling meat for his meal, and fell off to sleep on Zeus' bed (the old Samurai choosing to sleep on the floor for that night), the words that Zeus had spoken as his eyes had shone white circled through his mind, and troubled him in his light sleep."Unbeatable…" he murmured several times in his sleep, his mind overloaded with the scores of information that had been presented to him that night, yet that one single word permeating over and over with sudden importance._

_ _

_Unbeatable._

_ _

_* * *_

_ _

None of the three samurai in discussion had actually spoken a word, by the time Kaoru had nodded off to sleep again, but their eyes had spoken volumes, and none of the words had been overly pleasant.It seemed to Kenshin, and Aoshi, that this new sworded warrior had little respect for the abilities of either of them, as though he were a foolish young child who had no respect for his superiors, especially Kenshin.

This didn't particularly bother the man with the cross-scar, as he had often had trouble gaining respect from other samurai right off the start, mainly because of his size, but what did bother him was that he had known his given name, Shinta, and therefore knew much about Kenshin, yet still had this laid back attitude in regard to Kenshin's skills.This bothered him a great deal.

When, at length, Cronos began the discussion, Kenshin had decided to be very careful about any advice this red-haired man would give, and to be even more careful about screening through any possible traps.He hoped Aoshi would do the same.

"To begin," Cronos said sharply and loudly, which seemed to be the manner in which his voice always presented itself, "I suppose I'll introduce myself."Aoshi and Kenshin nodded, giving the go-ahead, so the younger man did."Though I've been given many titles over the years, and I've been cursed even more names over those very same years, my given name is Cronos."

"Cronos?"Aoshi inquired silently, burrowing his brow in regard, "that is certainly not a Japanese name."

"And I am not Japanese, if you hadn't noticed."Cronos replied back, his voice cocky and confident.

"Then why do you wear Japanese clothes, and brandish two Japanese swords?"Kenshin asked probingly, not wanting to give Cronos an inch.

"I crash-landed on Japan as a child, and since I have been raised in the traditional Japanese culture.Though my skin may protest otherwise, I believe I was born with a Japanese soul."

"Hmph…" Aoshi snorted, his eyes narrowing in disgust.

"You may not believe me now, but if you end up agreeing with me on what I am doing here, you will very quickly find out just why I believe what I believe."Cronos grinned yet again, sending a shiver down Kenshin's spine.

"And that brings us to my question," Kenshin almost whispered softly, before turning directly to Cronos, looking into his eyes, and asking with complete confidence, "just what brings you here?"

"I was counting on you asking that."Another smile, another shiver."But before I tell you that, I need to do one simple thing first."Cronos darted his gaze towards both Aoshi and Kenshin, finding no acceptance in either of their grim faces."I need to make sure that we all had the same dream last night."

"What does that have to do with anything?"Kenshin questioned again, his tone still reserved and cautious.He had barely any recollection of the dream that had entered him in the night, but from what he could remember, he had no intention of trying to re-live it.

"I'd rather not recall what I saw and felt last night, if it's all the same to you," Aoshi said leisurely, yet obviously meaning that he was not going to budge on the subject."That place was too deathly for words."

"Yes," Cronos said, his voice suddenly softer, and much more serious, "that it was."The air all around the three of them suddenly seemed to shift, as though with the abrupt alteration of his voice, Cronos had made Aoshi and Kenshin listen to what he had to say, with no choice on their own part."Close your eyes with me, it will help us remember the dream in its entirety."

"And just hope that you don't slit our throats while we have our eyes closed?"Aoshi asked skeptically, at the same time voicing Kenshin's concerns.

"Heh…" Cronos began, his voice again carefree and childish, "eyes closed?Why would I need that?I could have just as easily killed you both while we were in front of the dojo."Kenshin's heart skipped a beat, as he understood with utter certainty that Cronos honestly believed he was speaking the truth.Not a hint of doubt was traced in his voice.For the first time since facing Seta Soujiro in Kyoto, the innocence in the speech set Kenshin off, as though such innocence could never lie.It didn't so much scare Kenshin as it did mystify him, like something long forgotten in his past had come rushing to the front again.

"Luckily for you guys though, I didn't come here to kill you two, in fact, I came here to do the exact opposite."

"What do you mean?"Aoshi posed, while Kenshin was left mute.

Cronos merely smiled in return, his face back to the laid back style it had previously held."You aren't getting that out of me yet.I told you, with due time.First comes this dream."

"No."

Both Cronos and Aoshi turned towards Kenshin, whose voice had held such determination that was rarely seen in the old Rurouni anymore.That voice was much more befitting of the Hitokiri Battousai."You'll tell us now, or else I'll be forced to ask you to leave."Kenshin turned to face Cronos, and his eyes were narrow, lined with resolve, with obviously no intention of arguing.

Cronos' eyes quickly changed to match Kenshin's, and neither of them spoke for several moments as they tried to pick up on some sort of weakness on one another's parts.Aoshi coughed slightly, and not long after, Cronos spoke."Himura-sama, I ask for only five minutes of time, and then all will be explained to you.If you cannot give me that, then perhaps I have wasted precious time even coming to you."

Kenshin gazed even deeper into Cronos' eyes, burning through them with a stare glazed with anxiety and worry.More than the boy's laid back tone, or his even more noticeable slack movements, there was something about Cronos that had Kenshin at the edge of his wit, something he couldn't pinpoint, yet something he knew he had felt in the past.

Outside, the falling autumn leaves rustled under the low and breezing winds, while the fiery streaks of the suns rays shot down over the entire city.

"Alright, Cronos', you have five minutes.After that, I reserve the right to set you out of here."

"Sounds alright," the taller red-haired man replied, "I guess I'll have to make those five minutes count."He smiled again.

With that settled, the air again seemed to tighten and twist around the three, making both Aoshi and Kenshin suddenly very hot, and both of them fighting back impulses to grab for some sort of weapon, sword or no."Now, like I said, let's try and visualize this dream together.You'll merely have to trust in me that I won't try and harm you, and trust in your own skills to make sure that doesn't come to pass."

Slowly and reluctantly, the three of them shut their eyes and thoughts to the outside world, pushing their minds into a state of semi-consciousness, where one could dream, but was still awake and able to hear whatever they wished to.They zeroed in on Cronos' voice, as he began to speak.

"Now, where do we start?"There was a pause, as all three tried to recall as much as they could from the night before."Ah yes, how about with the Earth?"

Instantly, the mention of the ground in the vision triggered Aoshi's and Kenshin's memories, and in a matter of seconds, they recalled the barren land that had encompassed their vision."It was red," Aoshi murmured, "it was red with blood."

Kenshin nodded absently, also quickly remembering the thin pools that had covered the ground in the nightmare, and also recalling with a shudder the smell that had come from those pools."The sky," he whispered, reflexively, as he bore in mind the reflection those pools had made.

"The sun," Aoshi whispered back.

"Was black," Cronos finished, spurring the image of a lightless orb of nothingness hanging over the heads of the dreamers."And the sky, it was orange, and black on the horizon's, like the sky had died, and the heaven's were bleeding."

"Bleeding," Kenshin mimicked Cronos' words, following through on them."I… I was bleeding… in the dream, I was bleeding, from my stomach."

The other two obviously recalled a similar sensation, as they both winced as they remembered the pain the scar had given them, even though it was merely a dream."Yes, it hurt to walk, but I was walking _towards something."Cronos voice was soft and gentle, as his eyes shifted through the barest recollections of the dream._

"Towards the city," Aoshi continued on, a quickly transgressing train of thought being created by the three collective minds."The city was in front of me."

There was silence in the atmosphere of the room, as all three eerily pictured the dark visage of towering rooftops and arched doorways.As Kenshin did so though, another of his senses was called to work."There was sound coming from the city, some strange sort of cracking, snapping sound.Like a series of whips, or…"

"Fire."Cronos announced."The city, it was on fire."

Just as quickly as the words were spoken, the image in Kenshin's mind came to life, and he witnessed flames lick out and beyond the rooftops, crawling through and afar the doorways, and inching ever closer to the pools of blood that populated the ground at his feet.The city was now black as well, but there was a dull luminescence of orange and red that lit the borders of the grey-lined sky.

"That's right," Aoshi said deeply, his voice edging with fear, "the entire place was charred with flames."

"Yes," Cronos continued, picking up from where Aoshi had left off, "but there was more, there was something behind me.Something at my back."

Another moment of silence, as one by one they struggled to remember just what it was that they held felt in the tortures of their imaginings.Just when it seemed as though they had hit a mental block, Cronos almost shouted, "The wind!The wind.That was what I felt."

"Yeah, that was it."Aoshi was now breathing heavily, the full realization of the dream once again returning to him.

Kenshin, too, recalled the sensation of the wind pushing on his back, almost urging him towards the smoldering city, as though he was meant to do something against it.It seemed strange, but somewhere in the deep alcoves of his memories, he almost felt as though he had felt something just like this before, only different somehow, as though everything was reversed."And there was a scent too, an odor of some sort," he said, slowly.

"The blood," Cronos answered back, almost aggravated, as the smell of the blood had already been mentioned.

"No," Aoshi interrupted, "there was some other smell, something besides the blood.It was coming from the city."

Cronos had no reply, as he too quickly recalled another underlying aroma that had emanated from the city."Like this morning," he worded tenderly, "the smell that the air had carried this morning."

"The smell of burning flesh," Kenshin finished, "that stench was all around the city, almost pouring out of it."As he spoke, he began to feel even more strongly that he had indeed experienced this same experience before, and not in any dream, but in his real life.

"And there was someone walking out of the city," Aoshi gasped, as though he was losing his breath in speaking at all."Someone was walking away from the city, towards me."

"That's right," Cronos persisted, "his hair covered his eyes and he walked slowly, but he held a sword and it had the scent of blood, innocent blood, on it."

The memory flooded into Kenshin's mind as well, as he quickly realized who that man had been."And he had a cross-shaped scar on his left cheek.His eyes were gold, Cronos, and they shone white, so you know."

Instantly, and simultaneously, all three men's eyes were opened, and they all turned quickly towards Kenshin."Himura-san," Aoshi sighed, "that was you, leaving the city?"

"Yes, Aoshi.It was I.And that dream was no myth either.The city burning behind me was Kyoto, a little over eleven years ago, and I distinctly remember the smell of those burning bodies, though I can't recall the darkened sky or ocean of blood.I also remember the wind; it was blowing in my face, and I felt like it was pushing me back into Kyoto."

"Then who were you, in the dream?And how did we all have the exact same dream on the exact same night?"

Cronos stood up, at that, but when he spoke, he didn't answer Aoshi's questions, he merely gave him some more."Good, now that I know you two are to be involved in the undertaking, I can take you to the Mountain of Woe, and there we can find out just what your role will be."

"What?!?"Kenshin and Aoshi shouted in unison, "I thought you were going to answer all our questions now!"

"And I am," Cronos replied calmly, bending down and putting both his swords in at his waist once again."I will answer every question I can on the way there, but I can't waste time answering them now, we don't have much time to waste.Otherwise, Kenshin-sama, that dream we all had last night, will come true once again."

Aoshi and Kenshin were left speechless, but they both nodded quietly, realizing that Cronos had indeed no intention of injuring them in any way.And the three of them quickly suited up and headed outside, into the sweat-smelling air of the land called Japan; the scents that many called unbeatable tearing through their nostrils.

* * *

_"Another day, another piece of my life, wasted."_

_ _

_Okeda was again speaking to himself, though he would've more than enjoyed another ear other than his own to listen to his troubled words.He wasn't hung-over, for possibly the first time in several weeks, basically because he had actually spent the night at his own house, as opposed to at Yolanda's.His kid's were already off to school, and his wife was most likely tending to their small garden in the back, letting her husband rest comfortably._

_ _

_The slightly middle-aged man sat up, shaking his head and wiping pieces of sleep from his eyes.The shafts of sunlight that filtered through the window felt warm on his face, and he smiled slightly, speaking with an almost happy tone, "Looks like a beautiful morning.I wish I didn't have to go to work, especially since it's so far away from here."Despite his grumblings though, he got up from his bed, quickly got a drink of water, then headed into his back to say goodbye to his wife._

_ _

_"Hi!"His wife almost shrieked as Okeda protruded himself from the house.She dropped her gardening tools on the ground, and wiped the dirt smudging her hands on her dress before walking towards Okeda."It's so good to see you around in the morning."_

_ _

_Okeda smiled widely, the smile he knew she couldn't resist, then swiftly wrapped Seru in his arms, leaned in, and kissed her.She in turn draped her arms over Okeda's shoulders, and ran her hand through the back of his hair.When they parted, she looked into his eyes, and smiled back."I'm really, really glad you're here this morning."_

_ _

_"Me too," he replied, before relinquishing his arms and looking off into the sky, "but I'm afraid I won't be able to make it tonight.My student said she'd be better by tomorrow, which means after work today, I'm gonna stop by her house, and she if she's up for another lesson."_

_ _

_"Aww… the kids are really missing you, and **I'm really missing you too, Okeda."**_

_ _

_"I know," he answered quietly, feeling somewhat guilty for leaving his wife and children for such long periods of time, "and I really miss you, but this extra money I'm getting could really help us get out of this slum-hole.This new Meiji Era let's hardworking people like us finally get a chance to move up in the world.With money, you can do anything nowadays."_

__

_"I know Okeda, and I appreciate all the hard work you're putting into teaching this young girl how to paint, but there's no replacement for a loving father and husband.Not even a billion yen could fill that void."_

__

_Okeda looked into Seru's eyes, and smiled yet again, before whispering into her ear, "I know, but it won't be much longer, and then I'll make you the princess you deserve to be."_

__

_Seru smiled back, and then kneeled back down to tend to her garden."All right Okeda, get to work, so you can get me that throne one day."_

__

_"I will," he returned, before heading back inside to get his wallet.After snatching that up, he headed outside and onto the burgeoning streets of the city.He said hello to various people from around his neighborhood as he headed towards his work, a few kilometers away, and let his mind wander over the sudden and strange turn of events that had taken place in and around Yolanda's._

__

_There was the odd looks her sons had been giving him as he left, which he had feared meant they had realized what he **really** did there; there was the strange man who had been beaten on by those children in front of Okeda's work; and then there was Yolanda's strange request to leave her alone after Okeda had finished his regular job the day before.Though he wasn't sure, he had a feeling that some grave news had been brought in about her husband, and he feared that she would push him away after such a life-altering piece of information.Today he was determined to figure out just what was wrong, and hold onto his job at all costs._

__

_He lazed through his meager door-greeting job, as he did every day, content to merely visualize what he would say to Yolanda should worse come to worst.He could get as far as, "Don't worry, it'll be alright," but quickly became stuck after that.As the bright shining sun traversed across the skies, and the winds brushed themselves through the grasses, Okeda became increasingly anxious, as he realized that nothing he could say could relieve Yolanda of her misery should the death of her husband weigh heavily on her heart._

__

_As opposed to looking forward to quitting-time, as he had in the morning, he quickly grew to dread it as it burgeoned closer and closer to him.He almost asked his boss if he could work overtime (almost unheard of for him), but thought better of it, and came to the decision that he would sooner or later have to face Yolanda: he decided on sooner._

__

_He set off towards her place slowly, his feet dragging underneath him as the sun set, off to his right.He tried convincing himself that her husband would be fine, and that she **had really just been sick the night before.Even as he told himself this though, the nagging fear in the back of his mind continued to burrow deeper, till he couldn't rid himself of it, and was again over-ridden in unease.**_

__

_By the time he reached the gates to her house, he was sweating bullets, and wringing the edge of his clothes with his hands so tightly that his knuckles were white.Just then it dawned on him that he was less afraid of losing his second job, and much more afraid of losing the power he felt when he was with Yolanda; a power he found very comforting.He knocked on the gate heavily, with his hand._

__

_After a couple of seconds, the doors slid open, and behind them was one of the older, more bent down servants of the house, whose head was bowed low and whose clothes were entirely white, the clothing of mourning.Okeda feared the worse."Ah, Okeda-san.Yolanda-sama doesn't wish to see you right now."_

__

_The fear that had been eating away at him suddenly magnified, and he found it very difficult to speak quickly enough to prevent the old servant from closing the door.Somehow though, he managed to get out a few words."No, wait, please."The servant did so, and slowly moved its head up, revealing the old, withered looks of a woman shortened and frightened by the effects of time.Her eyes were hollow and shone under the early evening light, and again Okeda struggled to speak."Um… I just want to talk to her for a couple of seconds; I want to know if she's alright."_

__

_"Oh," the old woman replied, "I thought you would've known."She paused for a second, peering into Okeda's eyes before finishing, "there's been a death in the family.Yolanda-sama's husband, Batiou, was found dead yesterday morning."_

__

_Okeda's heart sank, as he pieced together that by Yolanda "not wishing to see him", she had effectively fired him.Not one to give in so easily, he shot back, "please, if I could just speak to her for a moment, I'm sure I could make her feel better."_

__

_The old mistress looked hard at Okeda, regarding him strangely, almost like he was an enemy, before replying, "That's an awful lot of concern to show, for an art teacher."_

__

_For a split second, Okeda's heart raced in fear, as he contemplated whether or not the servant's had uncovered his true purpose, and whether or not Yolanda's late husband had done the same.He tried not to let his fear show, but knew he was not doing a very good job of it, so he again said, lowering his head, "Please, just a second, that's all I ask."_

__

_Okeda couldn't tell from his downward glance, but the maid gave him one more long look before answering, "Alright, come with me."_

__

_Almost overjoyed, Okeda quickly set pace behind the old woman, who walked almost too slowly for Okeda's liking.Rather than worrying about what he was going to say, though, he was merely ecstatic that he had gotten past the front line of defense.It wasn't until he saw Yolanda, crying and shuddering on the floor, did he realize his lack of a plan could prove fatal._

__

_The maid left him in front of Yolanda's room, where he stood for several seconds, considering what to do next.No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't think of anything to say, and for some reason his legs were immobile underneath him.He couldn't remember how long he just stood there, but he felt more and more awkward with each passing moment.He opened his mouth, to announce his arrival, but thought better of it, and merely crept forward, hoping to reach Yolanda before she noticed his appearance._

__

_It worked too, up to the point where he could almost touch her with his outstretched hand.He dared no such movement though, and merely stood above her, looking down at the woman with whom he had spent countless hours shudder uncontrollably at her loved ones loss.Several more moments passed, and many more tears were shed, before she finally noticed him.She glanced up almost painfully, not even taking one glance into his eyes before she turned back towards the ground, sobbing, "What do you want?More money?"_

__

_Though he was tempted to reply yes, he held himself back and crouched down next to her, whispering, "What's wrong Yolanda-chan?"_

__

_She gasped a couple of times before answering."What's wrong?What the hell do you think is wrong?"Okeda said nothing in reply, he merely looked onward towards her white-clothed and shuddering body."My husband is dead.That's what's wrong."_

__

_"Yolanda, come here."He tried moving closer to her, and putting his arm around her shoulder, but she shrugged him off, and merely cried more in reply."Let me hold you," his voice sounded weak and desperate, even to himself._

__

_"I'm done with that, Okeda.You'll never hold me again, as long as I live."Though she never even looked at him, her words felt like daggers in the steadily quickening heart of Okeda._

__

_"Come on, Yolanda; let me help you through this.Please."_

__

_There was a pause in Yolanda's sniffles and sighs, and just milliseconds before it happened, Okeda could feel a huge outburst heading in his direction."You?Help me?!?"Her head was arched towards Okeda, her eyes were still wrung with tears, and her voice still strained and cracked. It was, however, much louder than before. "Ha!You couldn't help me with a damn thing if you're life depended on it!You could watch a million people drown in a river, and all you'd worry about is how much money you could pick out after they'd died!Don't think I haven't seen through your lies Okeda, and don't think for a moment you ever replaced my Baitou-sama!"She stared as hard as she could, for as long as she could, into Okeda's eyes before again falling down in a mass of tears._

__

_Okeda was suddenly taken aback, and he had almost no idea of what to do next.He got up from the ground, swallowing the saliva that burned in his mouth.He could suddenly smell the scent of burning fish, but he couldn't tell from where._

__

_"Just leave me," she whimpered, squeezing her hands into tight little fists until they bled."Just leave me be.Please."_

__

_Okeda ran out of the house, almost crying himself, as he finally began to understand the display of raw emotions he had just seen.When he got out of the house, and propped himself against the outer wall, he began shaking uncontrollably.He sat down, and then looked into the sky, the light being cut in half by the surrounding rooftops.It was then that the words of the old man from the day before came back to him._

__

_"You'll be torn apart by them, and you know it!"_

__

_"Only it wasn't heaven and flames this time.It was the love of two people, a love I seriously underestimated.I guess that kind of love only has one definition," he said to himself, as the wind flung by his ears and brushed across his face that was heated by the sun high above, "unbeatable." _


	4. Rainbows

Resurrections and Rainbows

**_Resurrections and Rainbows_**

**_ _**

_Chapter 4 - Rainbows_

_ _

The sky was clear over the heads of Sanosuke and Yahiko, outside the Kammiya dojo, but just on the edge of the blue skies and crisp air, hung the dark clouds of coming rain.The two paid little, if any, attention to them; rain was not at all uncommon at this point in the year, and a fresh sprinkle of water would perhaps clear the sudden confusion that had been created earlier in the morning.

But while neither of the two youngsters paid much notice to the burgeoning clouds, they did give much of their attention to Kenshin, Aoshi, and their newfound friend, who had appeared, literally, out of nowhere.Both of their heads were clouded with questions about who this stranger was, and just what his presence at the dojo was needed for.Sanosuke, especially, found himself doubting just about everything this redheaded Samurai said.He seemed peaceful and straightforward enough, but his eyes were somewhat offsetting, almost like they blocked out everything except the focus of his attention.There was little he seemed able to do about it though; Kenshin had been very outright in his demands to leave himself and Aoshi alone with this other man, and Sanosuke knew better than to argue when Kenshin set his mind on something.So the two black-haired men were left to ponder the possibilities of what was going on within the dojo's walls.Each, of course, had their own unique perspective.

"That guy doesn't look Japanese; I bet he's some American trying to convince Kenshin to sponsor a product or something."Yahiko said, as the two of them sat on the porch, looking outwards with their chins resting on their hands.

"Carrying a sword, and using it the way he does?I don't think so.He's probably a government official or something, maybe trying to convince Kenshin to take on another assignment like he did with Shishio."Sano replied, his voice lacklustre but certain.

"Nah, I don't know if they'd ever demand that much of Kenshin again, especially after all you guys almost died fighting him.I could see him as a guy trying to convince Kenshin to teach him Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu; you know, since it's kind of hard to find Hiko Seijuro and all."

"Nope.Kenshin said he'd never teach his style to anyone after everything he's done with it.Plus, why would Aoshi be in there too then?I figure the guy's a master swordsman, who's challenging Kenshin and Aoshi to a match, or inviting them to a tournament or something."Sano paused a second before chuckling, "Idiot, he wouldn't last five seconds against either of them."

"I don't know, he seemed pretty good against that bald guy this morning, who almost took Kenshin's head off."

"Hah!"Sano laughed, "Kenshin was just playing with him, that's all.One quick battou-jutsu, and that guy would've been seeing stars till tomorrow."

Yahiko's voice suddenly dropped, as did his eyes, which suddenly became serious and full of worry, "I don't think so.It seems to me that Kenshin was already plenty serious when I got back after helping Kaoru inside.Kenshin might know this guy or something."

"No way, the way they were talking about some dream, it was almost like ---"

"Dream?What dream?" Yahiko cut off, his voice questioning.

"That's right; you weren't here when they talked about it.Seems like a dream of some kind---"

Sanosuke wasn't given the chance to finish his sentence, as the doors behind the two conversing warriors were slid open, and three other's stepped out from the darkness inside."Kenshin!"Sano and Yahiko both shouted, instantly getting to their feet and turning to face their friend and comrade.

"Sano-san, Yahiko-kun," he replied, smiling at them and stepping out of the path of Aoshi and Cronos, who made their way down the steps and stood waiting in the front yard.Sano stared long and hard at Cronos as he walked by, trying to get some reaction out of the strange visitor.He provoked just as little as he had before they'd entered the dojo.

Kenshin motioned for the two younger men to talk with him on the side of the deck, and they quickly obliged.Both began to barrage Kenshin with questions, but the older man just waved them off and began speaking, "I'm going to be leaving for a little while, with Aoshi-san and Cronos, but I should be back before tomorrow evening.We're just going for a little hike to the foothills for a bit, and then I'll be coming home."

"Alright, then when do we leave?"Yahiko asked, his voice full of enthusiasm.

"No, Yahiko-kun, you two can't come along on this one, it's not worth it.I'll be back before you know it, and I trust you two to keep the dojo safe while I'm gone."

"Hell no Kenshin, we're not letting you slip away, alone again, like you did to go fight Shishio!"Sano roared, raising a fist in defiance and spreading his legs to make sure Kenshin knew he had no intention of letting the Rurouni just leave.

Kenshin smiled back at the brash remarks of the man whom he had gained so much respect over the year, and then replied, "Don't worry Sano, this time I'm not going to fight one of the demons from my past, or topple a terrorist organization… at least, I don't think I'm going to.But if I end up having to do anything serious like that, I'll call on you guys, because I know I'll need your help."

The response seemed to quiet Sanosuke, but Yahiko wasn't so easily hushed, "But Kenshin, what if you don't have a chance to come back here?And what about Kaoru?"

Kenshin's smile faded, and his eyes narrowed in concentration, before tracking their way to the floor, where he spoke again, with a chided voice, "Kaoru-dono."

"Yeah," Yahiko picked up, "what are we supposed to tell her?"Yahiko questioned.

Kenshin wanted to say that she wouldn't worry about him leaving, and that she would be strong enough to sit there and wait for him.History told another tale though, and he knew that the chances of Kaoru sitting idly by while Kenshin was off were very slim.He didn't want to leave her alone there, but he told himself that he would only be gone a short while, almost reassuring _himself more than the others."Tell her I'll be back, soon."_

"Kenshin," Yahiko started again, but was quickly cut off.

"Yahiko-kun, don't worry, this isn't anything like Shishio."

"But Kenshin," Yahiko retorted, his voice quickly lowering itself so only those close to him could hear, "I don't have a good feeling about this.Especially _him."He nodded off towards Cronos._

"Yeah, he doesn't seem _quite right, if you know what I mean, Kenshin," Sano added, unsure of his own words, as he resisted the urge to stare at the subject in question once again._

Kenshin looked on at his two would-be disciples, staring into each of their eyes in turn, wishing nothing but to reassure them that Cronos meant no harm.The fact was though, he wasn't entirely sure himself."I know, but you have to trust in me on this one, please."

Both Sanosuke and Yahiko replied with a deep gaze into Kenshin's rigid yet supple face, and both nodded soon after, resolve firm in their eyes.As Kenshin walked past them, they could feel a slight yet altogether icy cold wind chill its way through their clothes and burn upward along their legs.Both shivered, yet said or did nothing, merely watching as the three men walked out of the dojo's doors, and headed off towards the clouds that hung in the sky.

Neither said a word; just let their hearts and minds make sure they realized just what was happening.Try as they might though, they found it a difficult task, and they mutually kept a vigil silence until Kenshin was far beyond their line of sight.Then, the silence was broken, "I'm not too sure Sano, but I don't even think Kenshin knows what he's doing right now."

"I know Yahiko, I don't think so either."

The burning rays of the sun were soon blocked out by the encroaching hordes of dark clouds, as rain began to pour out from them, drenching everything underneath.The wind pushed them forwards, into Tokyo, and towards a small dojo, where there rested a woman even smaller in body, but much larger in heart.There Kaoru stirred uneasily in her sleep, hunger picking its way into her dreams, which now seemed like nothing but black visions of nothing.She let out a small gasp, but continued sleeping, two small white lights breaking through the darkness of her dream, and searing their way into her heart.Kaoru tossed and turned, yet she lay deeply immersed in her own, life-like vision.And creeping along her back she felt like there was something she could not describe, yet something she knew she had felt before, like an old ghost brought to life.

Meanwhile, under the very clouds that were inching their way towards Kaoru, the three warriors walked side by side through the now empty streets.The rain didn't fall on them particularly hard as they set out, but with each step the clouds engrossed more of their view, and they began to feel more and more a cool breeze in their hair.None of them spoke either, but both Aoshi and Kenshin had several questions on their mind, and even through the sudden change in weather, they still felt entitled to the answers their host had promised them.However, it wasn't until they'd reached the outskirts of the city did one of them speak.By that time though, the rain was pouring down, beating on them almost to delay their questioning.

"Cronos!"Kenshin shouted, over the pounding rain and now steadily increasing wind."I think it's time we talked," he added, more sullen, but still loud enough for Cronos to hear.

"Fine then," Cronos answered back, "ask whatever you wish, I'll answer it as well as I can.But we can't stop and lounge around, we don't have the time, we must keep walking as we talk."

"Alright," Kenshin stated, nervously grasping at the handle of his sword, which lay on his side.Up ahead he could see faint patches of blue sky, and the silver lining around the quickly progressing clouds."Just who are you, and where are you from?"

Cronos resisted the urge to chuckle, finding some humour in the question where Kenshin and Aoshi found none.He responded quickly, his voice carefree, "I already told you, I'm Cronos, and I came from where we're going, the mountains.I was raised there.If you mean what nationality I am, it's American, though I only have one memory of any sort of American-like life."

The response satisfied Kenshin, so he moved on, "What are you doing here then?Why are you so interested in Aoshi and I, and just how _did you know about that dream."_

"Whoa," Cronos replied, ringing his voice high like that of a rider on a horse, "one question at a time, please."He paused for a second, as Aoshi gave the man a contempt glance, yet continued walking on."I can answer you're first two together though."He breathed deeply, and then spoke with as much clarity as he could while working his voice at a steadily quickening pace."I came to Tokyo to recruit you two into a battle for the safety of Japan.Much like the government did with you a couple months ago Kenshin, I'm placing the future of an entire country in your capable hands."

Kenshin stopped in his tracks, and once Aoshi and Cronos had picked up on it, they also stopped and turned to face him.Though the rain clouded their vision, almost to the point where they couldn't make out his figure, they did manage to ask, "What?"

"I just told Sanosuke, Yahiko, and," he paused, dimming his eyes slightly, "Kaoru," he halted again, "that I wouldn't be going to fight anyone this time, and that I'd be back before they knew it."His weak voice quickly strengthened, and he loosed a quick bit of fury at Cronos, "You didn't tell me I was going to have to fight anyone!"

"Call it sin of omission if you wish," Cronos answered back, calmly, "I didn't tell you, you _wouldn't be fighting anyone either, I merely stated that I wanted to take you to the mountains."_

Kenshin's stare was now solid, resolute: he had no intention of playing into this man's hands, "I'll be no part of this then, I don't want to lie to Kaoru-dono and my friends, and I'll be going back to them if you don't explain yourself right away."

Cronos stared back into Kenshin's eyes, also firm and unyielding, but answered back quietly, "Fine, if you want a history lesson, you'll get one."He set off down the path once again, speaking loudly to make sure Kenshin and Aoshi followed."I am the inheritor of the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito Budo; I am, if you wish, the Defender of the Heavens.My mission, my overall life purpose, is simple."At this he paused, slowing his step, and then shouted over his shoulder, "You coming?"Kenshin and Aoshi quickly rushed to catch up, paying careful attention to each word that spilled itself out from Cronos' mouth.

"As I was saying," he restarted once they were again walking with him in stride, "my goal, as long as I am here, is to protect the nation of Japan from destruction.And, at this current moment, my goal is being very powerfully obstructed."

"What do you mean?"Aoshi asked, slowly so that Cronos would explain what he meant at the same pace.

"My master and I, the disciples of the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito, are not the only group that was originally assigned the role of protecting Japan, there was, at some time in the past, four groups, each representing a different faction, whose role was to protect Japanese culture and society from destroying itself, or being destroyed by others."He glanced quickly at both men following him before continuing, "However, almost a century ago, there was some small in-fighting between two of the groups, and subsequently, one of the faction's line was ended, leaving three of the groups remaining.Then, a couple years ago, during the Civil War in Kyoto, another of the group's student was killed, and therefore, that line ended not soon after."He stopped for a second, and looked up into the sky, where the clouds were now parting, and the rain falling down came gentler and with less haste."Follow me so far?"

Aoshi merely nodded, while Kenshin hesitatingly replied, "Yes, I think so."

Cronos nodded and then grinned slightly before going on."This left two groups to protect Japan, so to speak, mine, the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito, and the Honoo no Satsujin, often considered the most powerful of the Samurai group that had existed in Japan."

"If they were so powerful, why have I never heard of you or these Honoo no Satsujin before?"Aoshi asked, rolling his shoulders and throwing the rain off them.

"When the four groups were originally formed, back when the class system was first being introduced in Japan, they were top secret, even to the Shogun or Emperor, and since they have never really been needed since then, they faded out of almost everyone's memory.Himura-san, perhaps you've heard of these groups?"

Kenshin thought about it for a second, as the rustling wind came by and blew the leaves at his feet away, and carried the clouds overhead further behind him."Yes," he finally murmured, "I believe so.My master, Hiko Seijuro, once mentioned a pair of Samurai whose strength was legendary, and would only arrive when Japan was teetering on the edge of destruction."

"Yes, that would most likely be the two masters of the Honoo no Satsujin… unlike the other three groups, they have made their appearance known on occasion, often murdering several in the process."The last of the clouds had swept overhead, and the path seemed to wind on and on, under the shafts of the sun once again."Once again now, the Honoo no Satsujin have decided to make their impression felt, this time in a very outright manner."

"How so?"Aoshi questioned, his head lowered in thought.

"They believe that with the new Meiji Era in place, Japan has turned away from its roots, and its survivalist core.They are determined to bring back the class system, the Shogun, and prevent Japan from having any contact with the Western World."

"So you mean they're determined to bring back everything the Imperialists, like Kenshin, fought for during the Civil War?They want to tell us that all those lives that were lost during the war were for naught?"Aoshi asked again.

"Yes," he replied flatly, "and in doing so, they want to cost even more lives.Their plan, much like Makato Shisiho's was, is to burn down the major cities of Japan, and start anew, with a group of old nationalists as the main army, who would step up and make the new government in the destruction of the cities."

"But if this group is so small and elite, even with those old nationalists, they won't be anywhere near strong enough to topple the government, and set fire to the nation."Kenshin replied.

Cronos took in a deep breath, his forehead was wrinkled in thought, and he struggled to find the words to explain,"True, their numbers are small, but there are, or rather were, 12 of these Honoo no Satsujin, and their swords are more than powerful enough to topple a nation.Even just one of them, with the drive and the vision, could easily set fire to Tokyo and Kyoto before being stopped."

Cronos turned his waist to look at Kenshin, and then asked, "You thought it amazing how Shishio was able to command the fire around him, and create it out of the blade of his sword, correct?"Kenshin nodded, vaguely recalling how Shishio had used his hidden techniques to create sparks and fires, and how his warrior's spirit and ignited the flaming towers all around their battleground."Well these Honoo no Satsujin are a thousand times more powerful.With only a thought, they can set their swords, clothes, even their own skin ablaze, and not feel a thing."Cronos voice fell deeper, as he spoke, "I've seen them hurl balls of fire out of their hands, and even create fire out of thin air.Their techniques are some of the most deadly you can imagine, and then some.Even the least powerful of them, a young teen named Hephaestus, can control and bend the will of the flames better than Makato Shishio ever could."

Kenshin looked long and hard at Cronos, trying to see if he could pick up on some trickery or deceit, yet finding none.As far as he could tell, Cronos was telling the truth, as impossible as that sounded.Aoshi merely walked beside Kenshin, his face worn, and his jaw clenched.Cronos turned, and looked out on the path, which was steadily heading into the foothills, the wind blew on their faces, and his visage quickly set itself rigid.His pace slowed, and then altogether stopped.Kenshin and Aoshi quickly did the same, and looked back, wondering, "What is it Cronos?"

He didn't speak for several seconds, instead merely glancing into the surrounding green, before replying, "They're here."His hand slowly inched its way to the hilt of his sword.His vision scanned the thin layer of bush, and deep pockets of wood that were on their right, while the wind blew at his back, carrying the scent of the thin valley's to their left.Kenshin and Aoshi both quickly tensed up, and regrouped next to Cronos, also straining their senses to pick up on any would-be attackers.Slowly though, a sound came from the road ahead, the sound of two soft footsteps falling, one after the other.Cronos turned to face whatever was coming, and then quickly smiled before whispering to his two followers, "What do you know, the man himself."

Out from the curve in the path walked a small boy, clothed in deep blue and purple, and possessing a katana at his side.He walked with his head down, but his shoulders were wide, and his black hair bounced with each step.When he came to stop just in front of the trio, he raised his head, revealing his youthful face and scarlet eyes."Hello, Cronos-san."

* * *

_In the mere day and a half that Cronos had known Zeus, he had begun to see several things within the old man that he had not noticed when they had first spoken._

_ _

_Zeus, he had decided, wasn't just old; he was ancient.His hair was an almost transparent white colour, yet long enough to reach the man's back, and was wild and untamed, like his warrior's spirit.His eyes, while not always the blinding white they had been the day before, were often narrow and keen, expecting anything at any time, and prepared to deal with whatever came his way.His face was thin and weathered, but held a quiet dignity all its own, his high cheeks and bridged nose giving him a distinguished aura._

_ _

_More than this though, Cronos had begun to sense something else from Zeus, something he had never felt in a single human being before.It was almost as if the old man had seen the world, and experienced everything it had to offer, almost like his forlorn vision and vast memory knew absolutely everything, a bank of information just waiting to be cracked open.And if Zeus was willing to speak, Cronos had since decided, **he was more than willing to listen.**_

_ _

_"Today, your first day of training," Zeus began, looking straight at the thin and slender boy before him, "is quite simple, yet very, very important."He smiled slightly, and reassured Cronos, "And don't worry, you'll be able to do it even in your somewhat injured state."Cronos painfully remembered the bandages that were still wrapped around most of his body, hidden under his ragged clothes."Today, you learn how to hold your sword."_

_ _

_Cronos shot an almost mystified look, not quite sure if Zeus was merely kidding with him, or serious beyond all recognition.The white-haired man just grinned back for a time before answering his pupil's stare, "Pull out your sword for me, will you Cronos?"The boy slowly extracted the training sword Zeus had given him as he'd woken up, and then held it in front of him with both hands, his legs at shoulder-width apart, and the blade pointed straight up towards the clear, early, and darkened sky._

_ _

_"Alright," Zeus said, pulling out his own sword before speaking, "now, you have to ask yourself, does how you're holding it right now feel comfortable?"_

_ _

_Cronos considered it a second before questioning, "What do you mean?Comfortable in what way?"_

_ _

_Zeus smiled widely, the innocence and bewilderment in Cronos' voice quickly getting to him, "I mean **comfortable.You know, does it feel smooth in your hands, can your body totally relax, and can you move the sword in almost any direction from where you have it?"**_

_ _

_Again, Cronos thought for a moment, burrowing his thin red eyebrows in contemplation, then answered, "Not really."He replied, "I mean, my back feels kinda strained, and my wrists don't feel that good."_

_ _

_"Ok, then try another stance.Once you've found one that feels just right, you'll have found your all-purpose stance for the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito."_

_ _

_"But, but don't sword style's have set stances?"_

_ _

_Zeus' smile widened even farther, "Yes, most do, but not the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito.You see, this style of swordsmanship is unlike any other in the nation, in the world.The Tengoku o Mamoru Hito flows, like the wind, conforming to everything, and everyone, it meets.No two attacks are alike for two different users of the style, and neither are two stances.For this style of swordsmanship, you must find the way to use a sword for yourself, with the air as your guide."_

_ _

_Cronos stood, studying his master's words, thinking each of them over so he could begin to understand just what they meant."Ok," he replied._

_ _

_"Good, now try it again."Cronos began to move the sword around, shifting its position, when Zeus stopped him, "No, you have to bring it from your scabbard every time you wish to try a new stance. This will make it easier for you to draw your sword quickly when you have to use the stance."_

_ _

_Cronos nodded before setting the sword back in it's sheathe and then quickly drawing it out again, this time in a different position.Again though, he didn't feel entirely comfortable, and put it back to try it again.He continued to do so for several minutes, when Zeus suddenly went back inside their home, and shouted over his shoulder, "Call me when you've found it, or when you get hungry, whichever comes first."_

_ _

_Over and over again, Cronos slid his sword out, and tried holding it in whatever position he could think of.After half an hour though, he had tried everything his little mind could conceive, and he quickly became frustrated.He began to curse the sword in his hands, which was now giving him two tired arms, and shoulders even more weary.Still, he tried again and again, till he realized he would have to change the position of his legs as well as his arm.He set off to try each position again, this time with his feet in different stances.Each time though, he found something or other was lacking, some minor detail that annoyed him to no end.As he grew more and more frustrated, the smell of food cooking in the house wafted out to him, teasing his rumbling stomach and aching arms._

_ _

_Finally, when the sun had drifted up to be far above the edge of the plateau they resided on, Cronos gave up, and put his sword back in it's sheathe, then headed inside, his stomach giving him a dull pain in his side.He was worried that Zeus would be disappointed in him coming in so early, but when he walked in slowly, his head down, Zeus greeted him warmly."How does it go?Are you hungry?"The sensei pointed Cronos to the table, where steaming rice and well-cut fish awaited him.The sight was more than enough for Cronos weak stomach, which rumbled an assuring sign, urging him to go on._

_ _

_"Yes, very."Cronos replied, ignoring the first question, before shoving himself down on a seat and beginning to eat.Zeus quickly joined him, and started eating as well.The food was delicious, far better than anything Cronos had had with Yolanda, or her family.He ate it too quickly for his own good, but he was anxious to get out and practice again.Once he had finished, he found Zeus had also eaten his share and was clearing the utensils."I'll be getting back to it now," Cronos added quickly, before rushing outside._

_ _

_After finding a cool place under the shade of some tall brush, he set off again, trying to find the stance that was all his own.The next attempts came to the same success as the previous ones had, and he quickly grew agitated yet again.Just as the sun reached its peak overhead, he was seriously considering giving up._

_ _

_Before he could get extremely angry though, Zeus came outside, and offered some words of encouragement, "Don't worry, it'll come, just keep practicing, you'll find it soon enough!"He shouted across the field, where Cronos merely nodded and shook his arms, loosening them, before again preparing to draw his weapon._

_ _

_The trial and error process continued on all day, until the sun was setting behind the mountains, and the thinnest scent of supper was beginning to make its way from the shack of a house.The wind had been getting increasingly stronger, almost chilling the young boy; despite the fact he was now sweating intensely and cursing himself as loud as he dared.The wind seemed to urge him on though, almost counteracting his fatigue with its cold blasts.Finally though, his upper body grew too tired to go on, and he put his sword away, laying it at his side before sitting down in the grass.He breathed deeply, fighting back the urge to merely give up_

_ _

_He quickly realized he had grown frustrated with his lack of progress, even on his very first day.He replayed Zeus' words over and over again in his mind, but he could find nothing that would give him an easy way out.If this was his first test, he deemed, he had failed._

_ _

_His head dropped, and even the wind shoving its way through the rustling grass was not enough to push him onward.His period of self-pity didn't last long however._

_ _

_"Cronos!"A loud, powerful voice shouted from the direction of the house.Zeus stood there, all signs of the nicety and friendliness that had exhibited from his voice gone, replaced by the features that made him the man who had killed Yolanda's husband just a few days ago.Cronos' head shot up, and he quickly, yet shakily, got to his feet, before nodding back to his sensei.Zeus' eyes suddenly widened, and he drew out his sword, "Defend yourself," he ordered, his voice leaving nothing to complaint._

_ _

_Almost instantly, the old sensei began to run, seemingly at full speed, towards Cronos, who merely replied with a confused gaze."What?"He asked, his voice dry.Zeus gave but one answer, the raising of his sword, pointed directly at Cronos head, and the increasing of his already god-like speed._

_ _

_Cronos took a few hesitant steps back, suddenly both confused and terrified of this man who was to be his teacher.He gripped the hilt of his sword in his hand, but wasn't certain whether to draw it.Any doubts or thoughts of worry were quickly eradicated though, as Zeus closed his eyes.For one, fleetingly painful moment, they remained closed, and then shot open; the white light of the day before pouring out of them, shining into Cronos' heart, and igniting him to act._

_ _

_The scared little boy uttered a frightened cry, flexing his tiny muscles and using them to pull his sword from its place at his side.He shot it in front of him, grasping onto the handle with both hands, his arms almost fully extended, and his left leg slightly ahead of the right, both knees bent and ready to move him in any direction.As he drew his weapon out though, his eyes involuntarily shut closed, and his entire body began to tremble, as he contemplated whether or not Zeus had merely lured him into this place to kill him._

_ _

_He stood there, shivering, the wind now roaring in his ears, awaiting his imminent death.For several seconds he stood like that, his breath locked in his lungs, unwilling to come out, and his eyes locked in their clogged state.Finally, when he realized he wasn't dead, Zeus playful and almost laughing voice spoke, "Cronos, you can open your eyes.In fact, I think you'll need to."_

_ _

_Cronos swallowed slowly, before gathering up the will to rip one eyelid from it's sheltered position, and look upon Zeus standing before him, holding in his laughter with all his might.The redheaded boy quickly opened his other eye as well, and opened his mouth, releasing his breath, but kept his sword out in front of him, his arms not entirely willing to drop it just yet.Zeus looked about ready to crack up, and Cronos questioned him with as strong of a voice as he could manage, "What…what's so funny?"_

_ _

_Zeus merely responded by breaking out in a fit of laughter, nothing but raucous and merry amusement escaping his lips.Cronos pushed down the urge to shout at his master, and merely asked again, "Well, what is it?What's so funny?"Zeus didn't reply, again, but did manage to slow down, then stop, his laughing.Finally, when he had managed to calm himself down, he wiped away a tear from the corner of his now normal eye, and then smiled at his student._

_ _

_"Look at yourself Cronos," he said, gazing up and down his student, almost measuring him, "look how you hold your sword."Cronos deliberated for a couple of seconds before he returned a strange look to his master."Well, look!Do you feel comfortable like that?Can you feel the sword; almost feel like **it is at peace in that pose?"**_

_ _

_Cronos thought for a couple seconds more, mulling over his posture, trying to find some sort of flaw in how it made him feel, yet finding none."Yes," he slowly replied, "it's something like that, almost as if the sword chose me to hold it like this."_

_ _

_"Then you've found it, haven't you?"Zeus asked, his tone still joyful, but now almost… friendly._

_ _

_"Ye…yes, I guess this is my stance."Cronos replied, a warm feeling suddenly rising in his chest, this seemingly major accomplishment, and the admiration of his peer giving him a sensation he had never experienced before in his life."Thank you, Sensei, for showing me this."_

_ _

_Zeus merely nodded, then turned on his heel and announced over his shoulder, "Come on inside, we have supper to eat, then we can talk more about tomorrow's training."The burly yet swift man headed into the house, as Cronos felt the weight of the sword in his hands for a couple more seconds before putting the weapon away in his sheathe, and then heading inside as well._

_ _

_After another fine meal, Cronos found himself dead tired, and he quickly resigned himself to sleep on the bed Zeus had made for him during the course of the day.There though, he lay awake for several hours, till long after Zeus had drifted off into the land of dreams.Cronos tossed and turned in his bed, yet felt like something was wrong.Finally he got up and headed outside, picking up his sword on the way out._

_ _

_He closed the house's door behind him, and then stared off into the night sky.The stars were twinkling gently, and the air was calm and serene all around him.He breathed deeply, the refreshing scent of young flowers from the foothills below drafting their way upward, and all around him.He pulled out his sword, and found it remarkably light, almost as though it was a different blade entirely.He quickly found out it was._

_ _

_The edge of the blade he held in his hand was extremely sharp, almost razor-like, and it gleamed much brighter than the sword he had been using all day before.He realized he had mistakenly grabbed the sword Zeus had taken from his former owner, and then given back to Cronos.Though he knew little of swords, he did recognize that everything about the sword was of miraculous craftsmanship.The metal seemed harder than his other sword, but was almost weightless in comparison.The hilt was made of some sort of strange alloy, which seemed to absorb water, useful if the swordsman's palms were sweating no doubt.Cronos quickly marvelled at the way in which the air seemed to slice to the bidding of the cutting edge, and he had no doubt that an opponent's skin would also do the same._

_ _

_A sudden gleam come from Cronos side, and he looked downwards to find that the sheathe of the sword was also glinting under the moonless skylights.He held up the case in his hand, and saw that under the stars light, it shown a deep purple, which caught Cronos as strange, since he vaguely remembered that under the reflection of the fire he had been pushed into by Baitou, the scabbard had seemed a pale yellow, like the ends of the flames he sat in._

_ _

_Looking over the sheathe again and again, he saw that black letters were imprinted on it, English in origin.He had no idea what they were, but they seemed to spell out a word, horizontally from the top to the bottom of the sheathe.He picked out the top letter as an "R", but he couldn't tell the rest of them apart, as he had had little education in American even when he was living with his own people._

_ _

_Mystified, he put the sword back in its hold, and then headed back inside to go to sleep.The next day, he held the sword under the sunlight, and found that the blade's wrap held a normal black colour.He wondered if the lack of sleep had been playing tricks on his eyes, but somehow he doubted that theory very much._

_ _

_* * *_

_ _

"Hephaestus-chan, how nice to finally see you again," Cronos said, his tone still jubilant, but his hand prepared to draw his sword at any time.

Though the small boy in front of Cronos was obviously ticked at the "chan", he replied gracefully, "Same to you, Cronos-san, hopefully though, I won't have to look at you very much longer."The boy pulled his hands out of his gi, and lowered them near his side, next to the sword that hung there.

"The gates to hell wait for both of us, I suppose," Cronos answered back, shifting to a stance where he could easily draw his weapon, if need be.Kenshin and Aoshi slowly backed away, not afraid of this young boy, but somewhat disturbed in the way he and Cronos talked.

"But some of us are going to reach those gates sooner than others," Hephaestus replied, smiling, his hands quickly latching onto the hilt of the sword.He withdrew it slowly and held it in front of him, looking towards Cronos and smiling slyly.The redheaded guide quickly followed suit, pulling out his sword, and the two stood in front of one another, grinning with an almost insane sort of pleasure.A tiny flutter of wind shuddered at their legs, and then they were off.

Hephaestus brought his left hand up to the middle of his sword, and then quickly brushed the two together.Almost instantly a line of flame shot out from where the hand and metal had met, which quickly grew in size until it created a ring that covered Hephaestus' entire torso.The younger boy's smile grew, and he shouted out in a defiant yell, "Beat that, you fool!"

Cronos didn't even respond with a witty reply, he merely acted.Almost instantly he lowered himself to the ground, and then shot along the surface of dirt, straight towards Hephaestus' legs, and below the ring of fire.He moved much quicker than Aoshi or Kenshin, or even Hephaestus, had anticipated, and almost before the circlet of flaming air had been created, Cronos was past it, and headed with his sword directly at his opponent's legs.The young boy caught a quick glimpse of Cronos advancing before the red-haired man struck, and narrowly hopped off to the side, avoiding the quick swipe of the sword Cronos sent in his direction.

Once Cronos had regained his full height, he turned to face Hephaestus, and the two again smiled, though this time neither of them said a word.The black-haired boy lowered into a deep defensive stance, and Cronos merely faulted into the all-purpose posture he had perfected nearly ten years before.Kenshin and Aoshi were merely left to watch, take their positions as spectators to the match before them.Both, needless to say, were content to do so.

Before either could release even the faintest breath, Cronos advanced again, attempting to strike Hephaestus with a downward stroke.The young man again shot away, this time down the path.Cronos fired himself after his target, and again tried to nail the boy with his sword, but once more Hephaestus dodged, and headed further down the path.Over and over again, the two played the elusive game of cat and mouse.Cronos gradually began increasing the tempo, to a point where Hephaestus was no longer smiling with each attack, but sweating vigorously.Further and further the two distanced themselves from Kenshin and Aoshi, who merely regarded with silent awe at the two fighters.Though Aoshi made no comment, Kenshin silently noted to himself that by the time they were distant figures in the sunlight, Cronos speed was incredible, reaching even Kenshin's own god-speed level, and yet the man never broke his smile, or even seemed to be pushing himself at all.This didn't particularly worry Kenshin at that moment in time, but he began to wonder just what level of speed Cronos _was_ capable of attaining.He put the worry at the back of his mind.

The two combatants continued pushing on with seemingly limitless energy.At this time though, Hephaestus was no longer dodging and sidestepping Cronos' attacks, he was fleeing them for his very life.His back was now turned to the attacking warrior, and he was obviously going his absolute top speed just to stay the slightest inch ahead.Cronos was unrelenting though, and as they neared a bend in the road, he shouted out, "Come back here, you idiot, I haven't finished educating you yet."The boy didn't listen though, and he merely carried on, through the turn in the road.Cronos followed, hiding both of them behind the small forest that rested in between Kenshin and Aoshi's viewpoint.By this time, they were either wondering if they should go to help, or merely wait for Cronos' imminent return; without a word, they both agreed on the latter.

It wasn't long after Cronos and Hephaestus had disappeared beyond the horizon, however, that the young boy's true reason for attacking was revealed.To Aoshi and Kenshin's credit, they managed to pick up on their two would-be assassins, before they had completely reached their target.

Several snickers could suddenly be heard behind the pair who stood in the middle of the strange road, and both almost instantly turned around to face the source of the chuckling.Unannounced to them, two men, both dressed very much like Hephaestus in the blues and reds, though in darker shades, stood behind them, each holding a weapon, and both putting very much effort into not laughing out loud.Almost instantly Kenshin dropped downwards into a battou-jutsu stance, and his eyes narrowed to almost half their normal size, as he regarded the two men standing before him.Aoshi likewise fell into a fighting stance, though he had no weapon to defend himself.

Still, the two men continued to chuckle under their breath, until finally one of them let loose, and began laughing aloud."Are you serious?These are the two guys we're supposed to kill," the one on the right, who had stopped laughing said, "they don't look like they could hurt a fly!"

Promptly after the first's announcement, the second also began laughing uncontrollably, and nodding up and down in agreement.He even wiped a small tear away from his eye."Ah well, I guess it just means it'll be easy then.I still don't get why Apollo-sama and Artemis-sama want these guys dead so badly, how could _they even touch either of them?"_

"Who cares," replied the other, his smile quickly evaporating, as he pulled up his staff which he held at both ends, "let's just get it over with."

Kenshin decided he wasn't about to just let these guys attack him without at least trying to talk some sense into them, so he made an attempt to reason, "What do you want?"He almost shouted, his voice inexplicably high.

The one who had remained laughing answered this time, "What every man wants, don't you think?"

"Shut up," cut in the previous one, "don't waste your time talking to him, let's just axe him and then get on our way.If Cerberus is right, he won't even be able to do a thing."

At this, both men revealed their weapons.The one who had just finished speaking (who seemed to be in command, as he was slightly older) lightly pulled on both ends of the wooden shaft he held in his hands, revealing two sparkling blades; short swords very much like the ones Aoshi had used against Kenshin, only they were slightly thicker, and reflected the light of the sun directly forward, almost as if the reflection alone was a weapon.The other one revealed several daggers residing in his hands, almost exactly like Misao was known for using, only slightly thinner, and also reflecting the sun very powerfully.It would've seemed almost humorous to Kenshin that the two decided to assault Aoshi with the very weapons he used himself, if it were not for the seeming seriousness with which these two men progressed.

"Please, leave us be, and no one will get hurt," Kenshin answered back, as both of the two men moved forward, their eyes keen and focused, obviously not meaning to listen to any pleas their targets may make.Even so, Kenshin felt that he shouldn't force his Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu upon these two arrogant souls unless it was absolutely necessary.Hence, he gave one last appeal for reason, "I don't wish to do harm to either of you.There's no need for this."

Whether it was because of the tone of Kenshin's voice, or perhaps something else inside one of the two attackers, the younger one, which brandished the dagger-like knives, slowed in his advance, and reared up, speaking to his associate, "Hey Hyperion, you can take them.This red-haired guy is the only one with a weapon, and he doesn't look that tough.I don't feel like breaking a sweat today."

The other man also stopped in his path, and turned to face his comrade, almost oblivious to the fact that Kenshin was completely prepared to unleash his ultra-quick battou-jutsu."Hades, you always _were lazy, but this is just bad.This is a real fight, something we've never had before.Don't screw it up by not even participating."_

Kenshin began to wonder if these two were more brothers than warriors, but he didn't let his thoughts cloud his judgement.He saw an opening, and he pounced.Almost instantly, he fired from his position, mere feet away from the two attackers and fired out his sword with a battou-jutsu, aimed directly at the short-sworded man, Hyperion.The other man, Hades, didn't even have a chance to open his mouth before Kenshin was upon Hyperion, and almost quicker than either of them could breathe, Kenshin's blade was at the man's chest.The strange thing was, however, so was one of Hyperion's short swords.

Aoshi looked onward, seeing that Kenshin had used almost his quickest movement, yet this other man, not even looking in Kenshin's direction, had managed to block the attack.Besides the somewhat quiet clang of metal upon metal, there was nothing but the fluttering birds wings above their heads, and the eerie stillness of un-expectancy.Kenshin stood in his attack stance, eyes wide, looking at his blocked weapon, obviously amazed.Hyperion let out a light sigh, then turned his neck, almost at an inhuman angle, and stared deeply into Kenshin's expanded eyes."And just what, may I ask, was that?"

With a slight push, Hyperion shoved Kenshin's sword away from his body, and turned to face the former Battousai."Fine, Hades, don't worry about it.This one obviously is quite eager to meet his maker."He then pulled up both of his swords, and looked towards Kenshin with eyes boiling."Don't you?"

Kenshin merely stood there, his sword barely in front of him, protecting himself.He looked stunned, and Aoshi quietly urged him to regain his composure, or else these two would make short work of both of them.Before he could make his silent words come aloud though, Hyperion struck.He fired forward, from the leisurely walking speed he had held, at speeds impossible to witness, speeds Kenshin himself had only seen once before, Shuku-Chi speeds.In a flash, Hyperion had stretched himself under Kenshin's watchful blade, and slashed the cross-scared warrior in the thigh.Kenshin let out a surprised and painful yelp as blood shot out from his leg, which crumpled underneath him and caused him to fall to the floor."Kenshin!"Aoshi anxiously exasperated, as the Battousai fell.

Hyperion reappeared behind the collapsed Kenshin, standing over him with one bloody sword-edge, and a smile as lustrous as the glint the sun gave his weapon."This," he began, again almost chuckling, "this is the legendary Hitokiri Battousai, who doesn't kill anymore?How could _this have possibly defeated Makato Shishio?"_

Hades and Hyperion both began laughing, and Kenshin seemed almost permanently rooted in the floor.Aoshi quickly realized just how badly he needed a weapon.He had quickly fallen into a sad state of despair over his foolishness during the Kyoto incident, and had vowed never to use a weapon again.While he didn't intend to back down on his word, he didn't aim to merely leave Kenshin to be attacked by this man again, without a hope of defence.He clenched his fists, and began to wonder just what he could possibly do, in the face of someone who had so easily downed Himura Kenshin.

The laughing of the two continued, as if they enjoyed watching their prey suffer so, yet still Kenshin made no movement on the ground, except the drooping of his head on the floor."Hitokiri Battousai my ass!"They both shouted aloud, before more grating laughter.Aoshi's anger quickly overwhelmed his fears, and he clutched his fists together, determining that he wouldn't let these two men so easily beat Kenshin and himself.He planted his legs for a split second, and then ran full speed at Hyperion, who had his back still turned to the Oniwabanshu leader.The two black-haired men crashed into each other, but one, Aoshi, merely bounced off the other.As Aoshi quickly plummeted to the ground, he recalled the feeling of running into a brick wall.

Hyperion merely continued laughing, as he quickly turned and stared down at Aoshi, who rubbed his head gently, trying to make out what had just happened."That the best you can do?"He asked, almost sincerely.Aoshi looked up, into Hyperion's face, and vaguely, out of the corner of his eye, caught something moving along the ground.

"Hyperion look out!"Hades shouted, just long enough for the other member of the Honoo no Satsujin to turn around, and receive a blow from Kenshin's sakaba sword directly in his mouth.

Kenshin fell to the floor gracefully as Hyperion reeled about in pain, and let out a short groan as he brought his hands up to his face, almost cutting himself with his swords, and cupped them around his mouth, to halt the blood.Kenshin rose up from the floor, as Aoshi looked on, stunned, and turned around to face the two attackers.

"Hitokiri Battousai?"Kenshin's voice was suddenly deep and sinister, and his eyes, had… changed, somehow.No longer were they merely narrow blue orbs, they were now shining, a bright gold colour like that of the sun, and they gave no hint of fear or pain; instead, they knew only death and hatred."If you wanted to face the Hitokiri Battousai, you will."

Hyperion retreated slightly, turning around to face Kenshin, before lowering his hands and announcing, "Ah, he comes back from the dead does he?"He then spat out some blood and brandished his two swords again, "Come then, Battousai, and fight me."

Aoshi looked back to Kenshin, to find those golden eyes peering at Hyperion with a deadly stare._He's different now, Aoshi thought, __he's not like the Kenshin who I fought.He's changed._

The two squared off opponents charged each other, and began to fight at full force. Despite Hyperion's earlier advance, he seemed incapable of using Shuku-Chi again, and his and Kenshin's speeds were almost even, if not slightly in Kenshin's favour.As Aoshi and Hades looked on, the two locked horns, all their weapons moving at speeds almost impossible to recollect.The battle went on and on, as a strange scent in the air suddenly became apparent to Aoshi, a scent he had already smelt that day, a very strange odour he could not distinguish.The wind pushed this stench-ridden air onwards, down the path, and around the curve, where Cronos and Hephaestus were still doing combat.

By this time though, Cronos had severely worn his opponent down, and the younger boy was left to merely defend, as flight was now impossible.The black-haired boy was managing to hold his own against the much faster and more powerful Cronos, but even so, he knew he could not last much longer.He only hoped Cerberus' plan had worked, and Hades and Hyperion had already disposed of the Battousai and Aoshi.

Hephaestus quickly became desperate and was prepared to yield, when he tried one last trick he had learnt only days before.He created a moment of separation between Cronos and he, and then ran his hand along the sharp edge of his sword.Luckily, the friction between the two was enough, and his sword was soon lit aflame.He let out a yell of accomplishment, and then shot towards Cronos, sword extended towards his target's head.

Unluckily, Cronos easily pivoted and knocked Hephaestus away, into a pile of shrub near the border of the road.The boy, now badly bruised, in both ego and body, gave up at this point in time, and merely prayed he had given Hades and Hyperion the time necessary to kill Battousai.

As Cronos walked over to Hephaestus, sensing victory, Kenshin and Hyperion were reaching the end of their battle, and Kenshin was the obvious victor.Despite a few scrapes and gashes, and the main hit he had taken on his thigh, Kenshin's superior speed had proven too powerful, as he was in far better condition than his opponent, who was badly bruised and had a few broken bones all over the place.The entire time, Hyperion was cursing Kenshin, and was obviously putting his best efforts in to beat the wayward Rurouni, with little success.Deciding to end the fight, Kenshin hit Hyperion in the knees, sending him to the ground, and then jumped above him, as the wind swirled about, and shouted out, "Ryu Tsui Sen!"Before he could deliver the finishing blow though, Hyperion was suddenly whisked away by a blurry motion of dark clothing, and Kenshin's attack collided against nothing but dirt.

As Kenshin stood up from the ground, his eyes still very trance-like, and his weapon still at the ready, Hades set his injured comrade on the ground, "I think we may have underestimated him this time Hyperion."He then stood up to his full height, and turned to face Kenshin."You were lucky up to this point, Battousai, but now you won't even get the chance to use that speed of yours.You, my friend, are going to die, very quickly."

Kenshin said nothing in response, merely raising his sword and fixating on Hades, awaiting the first move.That move came quickly enough for both parties, as almost without a moment of hesitation, Hades brought up his hand and flung it open.Kenshin, expecting a dagger to fly forth, instead saw nothing but open palm.Whatever strange tactic this was, Kenshin deemed he wouldn't wait for it to take effect.Just as he was about to sprint forth and knock out Hades, the very air in front of him literally exploded.

A sudden mass of flames shot in all directions directly in front of Kenshin's chest, and the resulting concussion sent him hurling forcefully to the ground.Aoshi shouted out in amazement, "What!?"As he wondered just how the Honoo no Satsujin had managed to inexplicably create a small explosion where Kenshin had been standing.He was about to rush to Kenshin's side, but the red-haired man slowly pushed himself to his feet, his eyes even narrower and more intent on Hades as he rose from the ground.His hand was held up to prevent Aoshi from interfering, and it became apparent he wanted to deal with this one on his own, again.

Hades allowed the older warrior the time to rise to his full height, and smiled as the Battousai raised his sakaba sword, the reverse-blade glinting under the sun."Come," Kenshin whispered, deeply, trying to incite his rival into an unwarranted action.Instead of charging Kenshin though, Hades merely extended the long, pale fingers on each of his hands, and then flicked them upwards, as if they were contracting spastically.Kenshin's acute hearing picked up the sound like the slicing of a sharp object through the air, but even he didn't have time to react to it before two long streams of fire erupted their way from Hades' palms, and curled their way through the air, curving and turning as if they were merely gusts of wind travelling about.The two beams speed was almost god-like, and before Kenshin could anticipate when they would turn in his direction, they were upon him.Just as they reached him, they both exploded, as though they were merely fuses whose ends were connected to dynamite.Kenshin was again hurled to the ground, and this time almost his entire gi was ripped to shreds from the blast, his grip on his weapon nearly entirely lost.

"Kenshin!"Aoshi shouted out again, determined to help his friend, even though the help didn't seem entirely wanted.Again he rushed forward, but this time he was stopped by another force, that being yet another explosion, this time occurring just a little ways to his right.The shock nearly knocked him off his feet, but he managed to hold onto his ground.He turned to face Hades, who was laughing hysterically at his two opponents, both of whom seemed mystified by his technique.

"Come on, you can help him little man, just keep trying!"Hades words were choked with laughter, and Aoshi wanted nothing more than to wipe the happy and easy-going look off the man's face.Still, until he could determine just how Hades was creating these streams of fire and massive explosions, he was hesitant to mount any sort of offensive.He clamped his hands into fists, and took a menacing step forward.Hades merely continued to laugh.

"No, Aoshi-san," a weak and mingled voice said from below Aoshi, as Kenshin again struggled up from the ground, and used his sword to hoist himself up."Don't bother.I have this guy all figured out."Kenshin's eyes, still a golden shade, were fixated on Hades, and even as he spoke to Aoshi, his handle on his sword tightened, and almost every muscle in his body flexed itself, as his concentration reached its max."He won't be a problem for much longer."

Hades' laughing ceased, as he regarded Kenshin strangely, "You honestly believe that, don't you Battousai?"He then chuckled one final time, before dropping down into his fighting stance, "Too bad you will never understand my technique."Kenshin merely sheathed his sword at his side, and crouched down low, his eyes intent on Hades' hands, both of which were again curling and uncurling.The two faced off, as Aoshi backed away, offset by the seriousness and calamity in Kenshin's voice, and eyes.If there was one thing he had learnt from the master of the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu, it was trust.

As those two were facing off though, Cronos was merely interrogating Hephaestus, down the bend in the dirt road.After knocking the boy into the bush, and subsequently pulling him out, Cronos had been questioning the young man as to his impromptu ambush in the road."Well, what was the point in it?You knew you were no match for me, or even for the Battousai, so why did you attack at all?"

Hephaestus, his eye black and his jaw somewhat sliced open, merely faced Cronos and then spat on the older man's face.Cronos shot back a disgusted look, before hurling the young man to the ground and wiping the drip of saliva from his face."Screw you," Hephaestus said stubbornly from the ground, "I don't have to tell you jack shit."

Cronos, rather than fighting back with a verbal quip, picked up the sword he'd made Hephaestus drop, and then stalked over to the boy, his demeanour leaving nothing to the imagination.Hephaestus stared, wide-eyed, at the shimmering blade, and began to back up along the ground, his mouth hung open._Is he really willing to just kill me, for that?I've done worse to him, and he's never seemed this pissed off."Ugh… Cronos, think about what you're doing here," he stammered, his throat barely forcing the words out, as the red-haired man came closer and closer with each step."You don't have to do this."_

"Oh, but I do," came the reply, as Cronos lifted the blade up and then pointed it downwards, as he came nearer and nearer to the younger boy."I have to."He came to a stop just over Hephaestus' frightened form, and his eyes were alive with a near tangible form of pleasure, as though they enjoyed seeing the fear well up within Hephaestus' shaking form."Tell me, or I'll have to."

Hephaestus, trembling, scared beyond all account, looked first at the sword in Cronos' hands, and then into those hideously animated eyes.He thought for perhaps a second, calculating the time he had used, and wondering if Hades and Hyperion had completed their task.He considered lying for a moment, but Cronos continued to rear downwards, and he thought better of it, deciding that if they hadn't finished the two others by then, they wouldn't have been able to at all."A decoy."He said, quietly, trying to stall for every second he could.

"What?"Cronos asked, powerfully, as he lowered the sword even further, to where it was only a foot away from Hephaestus' torso.

"A decoy!"The boy shouted back, fearful of the blade inching its way nearer and nearer to his heart."I led you away so Hades and Hyperion could finish off those other two guys."The boy, hoping to escape Cronos' wrath, went on, "You better get to them quick, or else they might be able to finish them off."

_Could the boy be lying, Cronos wondered.He raised his head up and took a quick sniffing of the air.__Yes, their smell, it's coming from down there.It's weak, but its there. "Shit!"Cronos screamed, as he flung the sword in his hands away, and sprinted, his absolute fastest, back down the road, to Kenshin's and Aoshi's position.Though Hephaestus merely lowered his head to the ground, gasping for air to recover from his scare, if he had continued to watch Cronos dart away, he would've seen, or rather, not seen, the red-haired man go on at speeds incomparable.There wasn't even a dash on the ground left by his variation of the Shuku-chi, there was merely the rushing wind at his back, and the churning of his legs upon that wind, as the two worked seamlessly together to carry the young man back to his target._

_How could I be so stupid?Cronos worried to himself; __of course it was just a diversion.Hephaestus is nothing compared to me.How could I let myself be led away like that?He cursed himself several more times, in the mere seconds it took him to come around the large twist in the road and once again come into view of both Aoshi and Kenshin.Sure enough, Hyperion and Hades were there as well, though surprisingly only one of them stood.Hyperion, badly battered and bloody, was left on the ground, as Hades, with his long dark hair and near blood-red face faced off against Kenshin, whose hair covered most of his face from Cronos view.The Tengoku o Mamoru Hito continued on down the path at his invisible speed, determined to interfere and take down Hades, when a thought occurred to him._

He stopped in his tracks, and merely stood on the spot, looking onwards._If Kenshin has survived up to this point, let's see how he does now.He gazed forward, anxious to see how the Battousai would handle this.__If he's capable of what Zeus thinks he is, this should be no problem.By now he's no doubt realized that Hades' "flames" are merely wires covered in flammable oil that he can curve to attack from any direction.If he hasn't discovered that yet, then there's no way he can beat Hades._

Everyone: Hyperion, Aoshi, and Cronos, stared at the two fighters, neither of whom gave a hint of backing down.Both supremely confident.A churning shot of wind came at Kenshin's back, and sent his already unruly hair flying forward, covering what little cold be seen of his face.Hades made the first move.

"Die, Battousai!"He shouted, as he let loose a pair of the wires he used as weapons, one from each palm, and directed them towards Kenshin, both lit aflame, and both going against the grain of the wind.

Kenshin screamed a low, piercing battle cry, and pushed forward with as much power as he could muster, seemingly right into the two streams of fire.Just as the two beams were to hit him though, he lowered himself disarmingly close to the ground and let both of them soar over his head.Aoshi let out a sigh of relief, as it seemed there was nothing to stop Kenshin from striking Hades, but Cronos knew better.Almost as soon as they had gone past him, the two fine fibres of invisible metal curved in the air, under Hades' control, and swung back towards Kenshin, using the wind's current to carry them forward with renewed speed.Even as Kenshin neared Hades, the two streams quickly caught up to him, and Cronos feared the worst.Suddenly though, Kenshin shouted out again, only this time his scream formed coherent words, "Ryu Kan Sen-Tsumuji!"Just as the two rivulets of flame were about to pierce their way into his back, he pushed upwards with his body, and left the ground, curving his body into a small circlet in the air much in the way of the wires that pursued him, and fired his way even closer to Hades.The Honoo no Satsujin, nearly flabbergasted at this sudden and impromptu movement, and at the failed attempt to strike the Battousai down, merely stood there as Kenshin unleashed a battou-jutsu as he was coming downwards in his small circle-of-a-manuever.The sakaba sword-blade struck the darkly clothed man in the knees, and sent him flying into the air.

Cronos, not expecting such a drastic and body-wrenching attack, stood in his position, his mouth hung open, as he mouthed the words to himself, "That's… it.He's already there, and that move, that move is… perfect."Though neither Aoshi nor Kenshin would've had any idea what he would've been talking about, he almost instantly cursed himself for letting his words slip out, and then he slowly jogged over to Kenshin and Aoshi, hoping to congratulate them on their victory.

Aoshi, anxious, ran to Kenshin's side, as the legendary Hitokiri merely kneeled on the ground and caught his breath."Himura-san," he said, a rare showing of joy in his voice, "you did it, you beat them both."Kenshin made no reply, merely watched as Hades landed on the ground, next to Hyperion, his legs both badly injured, and his mouth hung open in silent agony.Kenshin's eyes, now shining a deeper, almost hateful, shade of gold, just stared at Hades' fallen form, and, almost to Kenshin's bewilderment, he smiled.For the first time since the battle had begun, he formed an actual thought, and to his extreme displeasure, it was merely another question to be asked that strange day._Am I really enjoying this?Is this what I am?_

_ _

"Kenshin," Cronos said, as he walked up to the two men's positions."That was absolutely brilliant, you'll have to teach me---" Cronos was suddenly cut off in the middle of his sentence, as an unearthly roar came from the small patch of forest in front of Kenshin, near Hyperion and Hades.Suddenly, before anyone could react, a short, bald form came bounding out of the dense brush."Cerberus!"Cronos shouted, withdrawing his sword in lightning-quick fashion.The man made no reply though, he merely sprung to Hades and Hyperion, snatching a body in each of his massive, clawed hands, and then shooting off into the hills off to the left.Kenshin nearly shot up, but Cronos seemed reluctant to take any action.As the three men escaped, he merely stated, "Let them go, all we had to do today was survive.We'll wait until later to beat them permanently."

Though Kenshin heard and agreed with Cronos' words, something deeper than his mind wanted to go after those three, two of whom he had almost perished fighting.Still, his limbs were tired and his head throbbed, and he resigned to let them go for now, though he was almost sure that he would face them again some time."Can you get up Kenshin?We have to get going, especially if this little sneak attack of theirs is going to be happening more and more often."

Kenshin nodded, and Aoshi leaned in to help him off the floor.As he was getting up, he glanced sideways, and caught a glimpse of Cronos' sword and sheathe, which seemed to reflect an almost bright pink hue under the mid-morning light of the sun.Regarding it strangely, he stared as he got up, and then noticed that there were also some kanji written on the side of the sheathe, though he could not tell what it said.He deemed them American in nature.

As he finished rising up, his eyes had quickly returned to their normal blue color, and his heart was beating slowly again.He gave a nod to Aoshi to say that he was alright, and then sheathed his sword again.Cronos looked deep into his eyes, and then asked, "Are you alright?"Kenshin nodded, and swallowed deeply, making sure he could feel all the parts of his body."Ok then, let's try and make it to at least the edge of the mountains before the sun falls."

Just as he was about to leave, Kenshin's voice, weak and tired, spoke up, "Cronos," he began, "what does that writing on your sheathe say?"

Cronos sighed lightly, then turned and looked at Kenshin, his face suddenly entirely serious and careful, "It spells…_ Rainbow."The boy's face was suddenly pale as could be, and his eyes were looking downward, at the ground.Before Kenshin could ask another question, Cronos said softly, "Let's get going."He turned on his heel and led the two behind him down the path yet again._

"What did he say?"Aoshi questioned, as he had not heard Cronos' answer.

"_Rainbow," was Kenshin's quiet reply._

The three of them headed on farther down the road, their pace somewhat slowed, as the faintest hint of a mosaic of colors spread out behind them, arching high into the sky of the rain clouds that had left them, and headed into the city.A rainbow of color.

* * *

_"I couldn't find anything like what you asked for!"Okeda shouted angrily at Seru, his hands clenched into tight fists, and his eyes raging with irritation._

__

_"How could you not?There's like eighty different kinds of them, and I said you could get any of them!"Seru shouted back, equally fuming.Her face was directly in front of Okeda's, her eyes were bloodshot, and her nails were broken un-evenly.Had she looked in a mirror, she probably would've been frightened, perhaps even as frightened as the couple's two young children that cowered in the corner of the small living room, wondering why their parents fought so._

__

_"It wasn't there, ALRIGHT!"His final shout, coupled with his towering height, quieted Seru for a moment, which proved long enough for Okeda to storm out of the room, nearly breaking the paper-thin doors he slammed behind him._

__

_Though both of the children were alarmed and startled, the oldest one, Kare, quietly spoke up, questioning her mother in as little of a voice as she could muster, "What's wrong with daddy these days?"_

__

_Seru, still angry and glaring in Okeda's departed direction, softened her face as much as she could, and then walked over to her small children, smiling lightly, "I don't know, I think he's worried."_

__

_"But then why do you two fight all the time?"_

__

_"I don't know," she replied, kissing each of the children on the head before ushering them out of the house."I don't know," she repeated to herself, after they'd left._

__

_Okeda, meanwhile, was already stalking his way around the neighbourhood by the time his children were out of the house, his mind racing and his blood still surging.His mind was barely working, and had been doing so basically since he had been fired by Yolanda, something he had hidden from the rest of his family, and therefore hid his anguish as well._

__

_A gentle wisp of divine and curious wind touched at the man's face, cool and reassuring.He tried to breathe as well as he could, keeping whatever anger he could from surfacing.He hated himself for displaying such behaviour in front of his children, yet as often as he tried to restrain himself, he even more often was prone to sudden outbursts, which often scared himself as badly as his kin._

__

_He wound his way through the streets, his forehead slowly cooling, as was the rest of him, as he came to a gentle stop in an empty alleyway several blocks away from his house.There he slumped up against the wall, and forced himself into a midway between calm and rage.The wind blew at his ears, and he could almost feel the rushing of it through himself, as though he were merely transparent to its path, a mere observer on its winding journey._

__

_His hands were trembling, as they often did when he was angry or frightened, and he lay back against the wall until they had stopped.By that time though, he was well relaxed, and he saw no need to get up, since he had that day off from work, and nothing but more self-created anger awaited him back at his house.So he lay on the floor, the few travellers that roamed the streets taking no heed of his presence._

__

_Several more minutes went by, slowly turning into a little over an hour, and yet Okeda was more than content to merely sit, and think.He thought of nothing, really, but a bitter and almost…dangerous memory proceeded to nag at his otherwise hollow thoughts.That man, just a few days earlier, who had been so deranged, and said all those strange things to him, suddenly seemed important, and he took a few moments to decide if he could determine just what the man had meant.Before he could get any serious thought in though, his nose was suddenly assaulted with a putrid stench._

__

_The smell, he had known, was possibly the most disgusting possible in the universe.Though he could smell no smoke, or hear no fire to accompany the smell, he couldn't deny its presence, and he quickly got up to find out its source.He ejected himself from the small nook he had been residing in, and then sniffed the air, pinpointing the smell off to his right.He moved slowly in that direction._

__

_As he progressed down the road, the smell got stronger, and he was almost in tears by the time he tracked down its source.In front of a small shop, quite obviously an inn, stood three people, two of whom were dressed in dark black clothes, and a third who, like Okeda, was cringing at the nose, and obviously arguing with the two darkly clothed ones._

__

_"We are willing to pay, of course," a husky, low voice omitted from one of the dark, hooded forms.Okeda felt something almost familiar about that voice._

__

_"I don't care!"Was the brash reply from the third man, who seemed to be the owner of the inn, "The way you two stink, you'd drive away the rest of my business!"The owner's voice was adamant, though plugged, as he was holding his nose._

__

_"Yes," Okeda whispered to himself, keeping a safe distance away from the trio, "they **are the source of the smell.How disgusting."**_

__

_The two black figures turned towards each other, and Okeda could make out the slim face of a young woman under one of the hoods, while the other was completely obscured.He could not make out either of their eyes.They seemed to be whispering something to each other, but before long they turned back to the inn-keeper and asked, "Can you at least tell us about that young boy seen around here?"_

__

_The owner replied with an almost angry tone, "What?You mean that little ruffian, Hokono?You don't want any business with him, that's for sure."_

__

_The two others just nodded, then replied in unison, "Thank you anyways."_

__

_They then turned together, as if as one person, and headed on down the street, towards Okeda.The man quickly retreated to the corner of another alley-way, and the two took no notice of him as they passed by.Even so, he took plenty of notice of them, especially the scent which seemed to surround them.He could no longer deny it; they were the ones that smelt as if they were on fire.Okeda hadn't wanted to remember that smell for the rest of his life, but these two were coated in it, living testaments to the burning of __Kyoto__._

__

_As they passed directly by him, the odour became to strong for Okeda, and it suddenly rushed to his head, causing him to lose his orientation, his throat almost vomiting of his own accord.His head swam, and he sank back down to the ground, his eyes awash in some sort of kaleidoscope of colors, none of which melded together or gave any hint of beauty.He shook his head to rid himself of the vision, but he couldn't, and before long his head was throbbing from the sudden imprint in his eyes.He had no idea where this graven image of a montage of colors came from, but he knew it was very painful in the least._

__

_After several seconds, the image began to fade out, and his head slowly returned to normal.By that time, the two blackly-clothed people, one woman, one man, were far down the street, beyond his sight.Even so, the wind, now stronger and less supple, carried their fragrance to him, unwanted._

__

_Okeda turned on his heel and headed back towards his home."Even that hell-hole is better than this crap."The wind seemed to agree._


	5. Part of Us (Part One)

Resurrections and Rainbows - Chapter 5

**_Resurrections and Rainbows_**

**_ _**

_Chapter 5 - A Part of Us (Part One)_

_ _

Until this point, worry and misgiving in the Kenshingumi's minds were few and far between.Besides the sudden appearance of Cronos and Cerberus, Kaoru's collapse, and Sanosuke and Yahiko's initial misgivings about Kenshin leaving, they had remained quite and out of Cronos', and the Honoo no Satsujin's, plans.This, it was seemingly destined, wouldn't last for long.

Kammiya Kaoru had been rustling in her sleep for several hours, and both Sano and Yahiko had been more than content to let her rustle.They paid little, if any attention to her as she churned about, her sheets and bed cast away forcefully, as the rivers of glistening sweat around her body continued to pour forth.Her sleep was dreamless, yet something still haunted her, a nagging piece of angst that protruded in the back of her mind.In the deep recesses of sleep, she had no idea just what it was, however, and because of this, it continued to torture her.

Finally, as the sun was waning, and the water of the afternoon's rain was evaporating, Kaoru awoke.Her head, dizzy and confused, peered around the dimly lit room, and a rumbling in her stomach caused her a few tense moments of anguish.She slowly arose from the floor, and began to wonder where her student, Sanosuke, and Kenshin all were, and why none of them had bothered to wake her from her lengthy nap.She rearranged her futon, clothes and hair, and then opened the door to the main hallway.It was empty.She went on down the curving corridor, expecting to hear someone.Instead, her nose was assaulted by the smell of cooking rice and fish, both of which were wafting pleasantly from the kitchen.She headed towards the delightful scent.

As she approached, she could hear Sanosuke's voice humming slowly to a tune she had no recollection of.As she turned the corner and gaped into the kitchen, she witnessed the black-haired man, his sleeves rolled up, cooking the rice with expert precision, and continuing to buzz the strange song from his throat.Though this caught Kaoru slightly off guard, she could never have prepared for the other sight that caught her view within the small room.Yahiko sat, on a stool, near the stove, watching the fish cook slowly, and he seemed to be actually enjoying it!Kaoru stood there, dumbfounded.

"Sano, how much longer till it's ready?"The young boy asked, not even the slightest bit of annoyance in his voice.

"It won't be too much longer.We've got to hurry, cook this and then eat it, before Jo-chan wakes up.If we're lucky she won't even smell the leftovers."

_Ah, Kaoru thought, the true intentions of the young men coming clearer with every second, __so they are merely working together to go against me.Well they have another thing coming."Too late," she said, just loud enough for the two men to hear it over the cooking food._

Both of them shot straight up, but neither of them dared to turn around to face the sound of the voice."You didn't hear that, did you?"Sano asked of his younger sibling.

"I really, really, **really hope not," was the frightened reply.**

"You did," Kaoru shot in their direction, her fists slowly clenching at her side.

Both of the men continued to stare straight ahead, out the wooden window in front of them, and out into the last glimmering rays of sunlight that streamed inside."Should we run?"Yahiko asked, his voice full of pride.

"No, we'll take it like men.Or try, at least."

Slowly, with as much grace as they could manage, the two turned and faced Kaoru, their mouths formed into forced smiles."Hi," they both said, simultaneously.

Kaoru said nothing; she merely trampled forward, pushed both of them out of the way, and began to set herself up a meal._They're lucky I'm this hungry.If I wasn't… Her mind gradually drifted into the various methods of torture and pain she could concoct.Sano, and Yahiko, scared practically to death, both took small portions of food, and were ready to sprint out of the room, when Kaoru shouted out, "Wait!"Both halted themselves in their tracks, their hearts racing, and turned to face Kaoru."Where's Kenshin?"She asked._

Neither said a word, neither even looked at the other, they merely stood there facing Kaoru like she had yet to speak.She finished swallowing her food, and then shot up, pounding the table, to ask the question again, when Yahiko snapped."Ok, ok I'll tell!Don't hurt me!"

"No, you fool!"Sanosuke shouted back, grabbing Yahiko by the arm, and staring, fearfully, into the boy's eyes."We can't tell her, you know that!"

"Let go of me!"Yahiko shouted back, his voice now full of its usual rage.Gone was the camaraderie with Sano that had formed during Kaoru's absence."Kenshin told us what to tell her, damnit!It'll be fine."

"Are you stupid?She'll kill us when she finds out we let him go---" Sanosuke stopped, realizing his own stupidity.

"Go?"Kaoru asked shrilly, her need to know overriding her immediate anger."Go where?With whom?"

"You tell her," Yahiko nudged Sanosuke.

"No, you tell her."

"No, you!"

"No, you!"Sano roared back, "You're the one who told her he left."

Kaoru walked forward, grabbed both men by the collar, and with seemingly in-human strength, pulled them off the ground."Where did he go?"

Sano gulped, his eyes wide in fear, as he replied, "With that man, Cronos," he answered.

"Yeah," Yahiko added, "Kenshin, Aoshi and that guy all left before noon."

Kaoru dropped them both onto the floor, where they tried to regain their injured composure."Kenshin," Kaoru stood still, trying to form coherent thought in her suddenly jumbled mind."Kenshin," she said again, quieter.

"We tried to get him to stay, but he was pretty determined.He didn't even want us to come," Yahiko entered, though he wasn't sure Kaoru heard him at all.

The young woman lowered her eyes, thinking of nothing but how she could bring Kenshin back._Why did he leave, now, when everything was so perfect?Kenshin, you fool._

"He told us to tell you he'd be back quickly, like tomorrow or so."

Kaoru paid no attention to her student's words, merely exiting the kitchen with as much haste as she could manage, and heading towards the door, as if Kenshin would be waiting for her there.Though even she realized the futility of such thoughts, deep down, she hoped it would be true.Of course, it was not.

The gate to the dojo was tightly closed, damp from the mid-afternoon rain, and nobody had touched it since Yahiko and Sano shut it closed after Kenshin's departure.She walked up to the wooden frame slowly, and placed her hand on it, using the other one to shield her watery, tired eyes.She pulled the hand away from the door, and brought it to her face as well; she was surprised, and pleased: it smelt fresh, rejuvenated, and beautiful; it smelt of Kenshin.

"Kaoru," the sound of Yahiko's voice startled the woman, who wiped away her forming tears, then rested her head on the door, breathing quickly."It'll be alright, Kenshin was sure of it."

_We came back Kenshin, together, to __Tokyo__, so why this?Why leave?"I know, Yahiko, I'm sure he'll be fine."Her voice was weak, but held onto the same confidence Yahiko had grown to count on.He took the sign to mean she was alright._

"Then do you want to come inside and eat supper with us?We were just joking before, you know.We were going to wake you up."

Kaoru smiled, forcefully, but smiled nonetheless, and turned around to face her pupil, "Sure, sure.You moron, you think I'm going to fall for that?You guys better not even touch a morsel till I'm full, you hear?"

The two headed inside, and continued on, "I can't speak for Sano, but I'm not even really that hungry."Kaoru smiled again, _thanks Yahiko, __but even your small attempts aren't enough to cheer me up.Only Kenshin can do that._

They entered the kitchen and found Sano, his mouth completely full, and a piece of fish being pushed into his half-opened jaw.He made some sound, almost like a dog whimpering, before Kaoru nailed him in the head with a well-placed fist and sent him to the floor, food forcing its way down his throat.

The three went on eating in silence, each left to their own thoughts.Though Sano had already had his fill, he continued to eat, almost socially, as the sun continued to burn its path down the darkening skies.When they had finished, Kaoru went to her room, and Yahiko went to practice in the main hall, while Sano sat on the porch-steps and looked into the sky, chewing on his toothpick.

_You better come back, Kenshin.Otherwise, I'm going to have to go looking for your ass. And I think we all remember how that worked out last time.Sanosuke smiled sheepishly, as the first twinkling shone out and caught his eye.The sun was setting._

_Damnit Kenshin, you better hurry up and get back here.You promised me that as soon as Kaoru says I'm ready, you'd train with me.Before you know it, I'll be shoving that Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu straight up your ass!Yahiko grinned, dreaming his moment of victory, as he had every time since beginning the Kammiya Kasshin Ryu.The boy was forced to light a few candles to aid his sight, as the room was becoming increasingly dark.__The sun is setting._

_Kenshin.It was the only word she could think of, the only word she dared conjure at that failingly possessive moment.__Kenshin.Kaoru lay on the floor, again, looking up, into the dark dreary mat of night within her room.The sun was setting, but she could've cared less; all she cared for was the one thing she couldn't have at that moment in time: security.She was scared, and she didn't know why, which almost scared her much more than the fear itself._

As all three of the occupants of the dojo were thinking though, there came a knock on the huge dojo walls.They all turned, and all shot towards the door at exactly the same time.Their hopes were identical, but when they reached the door, it was almost as if they were afraid to open it.None of them moved for several seconds, till again the knock rang out, vibrating through the still night air.

Finally Yahiko moved forward, and slid the door open.They all stared forward, straight to where Kenshin's face should be, _would be, they hoped.But as the gate was swung wide, there was only an empty mass of air where the old Rurouni's face was supposed to be.Their hearts sank, their arms dropped, but their eyes remained locked in that position of nothingness."Hmph…HMPH!"Came a loud cough from in front of them, and almost instantly their eyes turned downwards, and onto the guest who had come knocking._

"Misao-chan!"They all shouted out together, suddenly feeling altogether ignorant with their vacant stare.

Misao stepped forward, and quickly hugged Kaoru tightly, as though she were mirroring the Sensei's worried thoughts."Kaoru-chan," she replied, whispering softly.

"Misao," Yahiko asked tenaciously, "what are you doing here?"

Misao and Kaoru parted, slowly, and Misao replied in a worried tone, "Aoshi-sama is gone.He disappeared from the temple a couple days ago, and hasn't been seen since.I thought he might've come here."

All three of the host's heads fell at the same time, as the sudden rush of joy at seeing their friend was quickly overcome by the long-standing feeling of dread that stole its way into their hearts.None of them spoke a word, and Misao grew impatient.She asked again, "Well, did he come here?Is he here?"

Finally Sano took it upon himself to break the news to her, "He _was here.He and Kenshin left, near _noon today.They went off with some stranger, and they didn't say exactly where they were going."The older man placed a reassuring hand on Misao's shoulder, but even that wasn't enough to prevent her from dropping her head and pushing back the tears in her eyes.

Sano let his hand fall, figuring it was doing little good, and then slowly Kaoru moved beside Misao and brought her inside, helping to hide the shuddering of her shoulders as tears of hopelessness, anger, and fear ran their way down her cheeks.Kaoru felt the young girl's pain, though she could think of nothing to do to remedy it; if she had, she would've undoubtedly used the cure on herself.

Everyone headed inside, and Kaoru prepared some tea, as she had a feeling the four of them would be doing some talking for hours into the expanding night.Misao, her clothes dirty and worn from the trip to Tokyo, changed, and then sat in a small circle with the other three.They talked, and talked, into the early hours of the morning.Few words amongst those spoken were happy, but each knew that something had to be done about this impromptu leaving, and they knew for certain they were the ones to do it.The men gradually drifted off to sleep, leaving Kaoru and Misao to continue the discussion.

"I came all the way from Kyoto for this.I _need to find him, quickly, before he goes and hurts himself again.I don't think he realizes how much damage, both mental and physical, he took from the battle with Shishio."_

"Same with Kenshin.He's been happier since we came back to Tokyo, but there's still something bothering him, especially this morning.It was strange; there was almost a smell around here, like---"

"Like something burning?"Misao cut in.Kaoru nodded, her eyes asking the question for her, "Yeah, I smelt it too, when I was on the way here.It was disgusting, but it almost smelt… familiar."

"Yeah, it was so strange…" Kaoru paused for a second, before looking into Misao's eyes, gently searching for something inside them, before letting the worry in her own heart pour to the surface."I think Kenshin, he… he, was almost _in the smell.I can't describe it.It's almost like there was something in the smell that reminded me of Kenshin."_

"How can that be though?"Misao exclaimed, almost frightened, "That smell was disgusting."

"I know, but…" Kaoru's eyes wandered away, and she quickly felt more tears coming in at the side of them.

"Kaoru-chan," Misao motioned, leaning forward and tightly hugging the older woman."Don't worry; we'll work this out together.For Aoshi-sama, and Himura-sama.I promise you."

"Thank you, Misao-chan," Kaoru answered, returning the hug with a thankful tone.

The two young women quickly turned out the remaining lights in the house, and then went to sleep.Neither paid much attention to the swirling wind that carried itself above the roof of the dojo, but it paid very close attention to them, catching each word, each phrase in its pit-less clutches.It also blew by the doors of the dojo, and swept into its arms another scent, that of a warrior whose heart was at home, but whose body walked the dark corridors of the foothills.The wind swept on about, and then passed, leaving in silence the four young residents of the Kammiya dojo.

* * *

_"Cronos, come over here for a little."_

_ _

_A month had passed for Cronos and Zeus since the boy had begun his training, and in that time, the two's relationship had blossomed.Father-to-son, brother-to-brother, comrade-to-comrade, student-to-teacher… none of these descriptions fitted what the two were for each other.They rarely spoke, except when Zeus gave orders, or while they ate their lengthy and filling suppers, yet they both felt as if they had been in conversations so deep, so heart-telling that they would often know what the other would say, before they said it.This, in the strict world of martial arts training, was quite uncommon._

_ _

_"What is it, Zeus-sensei?"Cronos asked, meekly, wiping sweat from his drenched brow and looking up to Zeus, who stood on a batch of rocks near the edge of the plateau._

_ _

_His master said nothing in reply, continuing to perch atop the flat-faced rocks, looking out into the steadily falling sky as his eyes dancing about the lights of the night, which were coming out in peering patches.His face was twisted into a mixed flood of surprise and excitement, like the sky had something special for him that day; as if it carried something he had never seen before.A few seconds passed before Zeus had made any sort of movement, and when he did, it was almost overcome with childish enthusiasm."Come here Cronos!Climb up here, quick!"_

_ _

_Cronos sheathed his practice sword away, then followed his master's commands, climbing the slowly sloping rocks and standing beside his sensei as he approached the white-haired man.When Zeus made no movement or sound, Cronos merely looked out into the sky with him, gazing at the frigid yet beautiful collages of purple, green, and orange.Breathtaking, perhaps, but Cronos had seen many nightfall's like this one, and it failed to capture his eye._

_ _

_Zeus, however, was completely enthralled, and even as minutes turned past, he said nothing to his student, and merely stared upwards, as the moon began to caress the darkness of the twilight.Finally, as his patience began to fade, Cronos asked, "What is it, Zeus-sensei?"_

_ _

_"Oh!"Zeus replied, whipping his head around to face Cronos, obviously forgetting he had called him over at all."Yes, Cronos, look, up there," he pointed towards a patch of sparkling stars to the left of the moon, "You see that brightly shining star there?It's actually a planet, named Ares."_

_ _

_Cronos, picking up on his master's excitement, gawked at the indicated space, and quickly replied, "You mean that one that looks purple?"_

_ _

_"Yes, yes.That is the planet Ares, or Mars, if you wish, the closest neighbour to Earth.It's the closest thing the wind will never touch."The two continued to stare at the fixture, as it twinkled through the layers of atmosphere that covered the Earth."The air, Cronos, gets thinner the higher up you go.That's part of the reason why I train you so high up, so that you will learn how to breathe with less air.That will make you stronger in the long run.Up there though," he paused, "the air is non-existent.The wind will never reach that far, it can't."_

_ _

_Cronos continued to look on, but regarded Zeus' comments for a second, and before long he sheepishly asked, "Zeus-sensei, you talk about the wind sometimes, almost like its alive.It's almost as if it were a part of you, or something."_

_ _

_Zeus smiled broadly, and then turned to face Cronos, his voice quite peaceful and reassuring when he spoke."That's because, in a sense, it is."_

_ _

_"What?"_

_ _

_Zeus just continued to smile, and, placing a hand on Cronos' shoulder, led the small boy back down the rocks, speaking slowly, explaining carefully."Well, you see, the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito is one of four of the most powerful type of Budos in __Japan__.A long, long time ago, those four Budos were assembled and assigned the role of protecting __Japan__ in its most desperate hour.Needless to say, the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito was one of those Budos."_

_ _

_"But what does that have to do with the wind?"_

_ _

_"The wind is at the essence of the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito.Originally, it was merely formed to move like the wind, flowing and quick, but in time it grew closer and closer to actually mimicking the very movements of the wind, till eventually it reached the level that you and I use, where the wind, and the master of the Budo, move as one, constant object."_

_ _

_"So you mean we learn to use the wind to our advantage or something?"_

_ _

_"No, much more than that.We **use the wind to do our bidding.We control it, and use it to hasten our movements, add more power to our swords, and even shape it into weapons against our opponents.The wind, in the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito, is a weapon, and a saviour, that stands at our side, and helps us whenever we need it."**_

_ _

_"But… but, how?"_

_ _

_"That, my young apprentice, is something you'll have to determine for yourself."They came to a stop, in front of a small patch of dirt that served as a place for Cronos to practice his footwork.It was well worn, and the coming of fall promised the grass that had populated there would not be returning any time soon."There will be a moment, Cronos, where your life will balance on being able to use the wind.If you can use it, you'll survive, and go on.If not, you will die.By that time, you will have to have gained the trust of the wind, and you will have to trust **it in return."**_

_ _

_Cronos shook his head, his entire mind confused beyond belief."What do you mean?When is this going to happen?"_

_ _

_"I honestly cannot say.It's different for everyone.I was faced by it when I was about three years older than you.It usually occurs quite early in your life, but you don't have to worry; if you pay attention to me, and do your best, the wind will be there for you."_

_ _

_Cronos said nothing, but looked down at the ground, as a gentle brush of wind blew at his ankles."Did he just cause that?"Cronos asked himself, barely even saying the words."Can Zeus really control the wind like he says?"_

_ _

_"What was that?"Zeus asked, leaning in to hear Cronos' voice._

_ _

_"Oh, nothing," was the quaint reply, Cronos flashing a reluctant smile in the face of his uncertainty."If it's alright with you, Zeus-sensei, I'd like to finish perfecting that sword stroke you taught me today."_

_ _

_Zeus rose back up to his full height, smiling, and then nodded, "By all means.I'll be inside preparing a late supper.Come in when you're ready."With that, the old man turned abruptly, and the cape which he wore on occasion was suddenly caught by a gust of wind, causing it to flap and whip about in the air; a disrupting yin to the opaque quietness' yang.Cronos went back to his training, absolving his mind of the words his master had spoken, and concentrating on his downward stroke._

_ _

_His master, however, was deeply concentrating on the very words he had spoken.He had tried to remember how **his master had explained it to him, all those years ago, yet he could not, no matter how hard he tried.He deemed that, like many things in Tengoku o Mamoru Hito, this was one he had to make up as he went along.Though he was naturally a poor teacher, Cronos was an excellent student, and the two augmented each other well.He wondered if it was the same for his onetime Sensei, Uranus; but the only memories he had of that old, withered, powerful man were of a vast sea of knowledge, and an imposable way of dispensing it.**_

_ _

_A kind of strange mist was lowering its way into the valley of a plateau that the two warriors called home, and it altogether carried a bizarre smell, almost incomprehensible.A veil of fog rested itself over the two, and Cronos was quickly forced indoors.They ate another rich, flavourful meal, this time including some rare chicken, which Zeus seemed to have an ample supply of, though it was fairly rare in Japan cuisine.After that, they headed to bed, content in the holds of a wind-charred sleep._

_ _

_Nearly across the nation, a young man, barely 18 years old, with a cross-scar on his cheek, and a Sakaba sword at his side, rested in the alleyway of an empty inn, un-able to pay for a room, and unwilling to do the only thing he was truly good at.He figured, right then and there, that he would need another job, besides Rurouni.The smell of a fresh-cooking substance, somewhat like fish, caught his nose, and a thought suddenly entered his mind.The next day, Himura Kenshin began to learn to cook._

_ _

_* * *_

_ _

The road was getting narrower and narrower all around Kenshin, Aoshi, and Cronos; the trees were steadily thinning but yet the road grew only leaner as they progressed.They were by then in the highest of the foothills, and the mountains took up nearly their entire view.They had slept the night before, all three tired and distraught by the battle with the Honoo no Satsujin the afternoon previous.With nothing but the dim light of the moon to guide them, their tired bodies could not go on.Aoshi, in particular, had been left tired to the bone, and had welcomed sleep warmly; the remembrance of the dreams from the night before not even entering his mind.It should have; for they came again that night, as they did for Cronos and Kenshin, as well.Neither said a word as they awoke the morning after, yet all felt the dream residing within one another.Kenshin could almost smell the blood that had been pouring out from his stomach.

They had set off at daybreak, yet they made little progress; the tiny road giving no heed to rise or fall of the hills, or of the steadily increasing rocky structure of the path.The road merely went on and on, and the only movement was of the wind, at their backs, and the sun, glaring on into their eyes.They stopped for a short while, after nearly hours of trudging on, and Cronos offered a small breakfast, from a pouch he had concealed within his gi the day before.They ate solemnly, Aoshi and Kenshin wondering just how long it would take before they finally reached their destination, both quietly pondering the thought that there was no destination at all.They finished, and then headed on out.

The walking on continued for several hours, always moving at the same slow, steady pace, despite Cronos' random urges to push forward.In the back of his mind, he was fearful of another ambush from the Honoo no Satsujin, and he was heavily doubting the strength of Kenshin after the tiring battle of the day before, and he worried even more so about Aoshi.

Finally, after the sun had passed the halfway mark across the sky, Cronos led them away from the path, and into a small tunnel in the thin forest around them.They occasionally had to push thorns, bothersome branches and the like away from their path, but for the most part they paid no attention.Then the path started to go deceivingly upwards, and as their stomachs rumbled, their hearts dropped, as the path seemed to continue with no end.The sun meekly poured paltry amounts of light on their path, but for the most part the shade of the trees cut off any hope of light.They wandered, blindly following in Cronos' lead, till finally, some time after they had last eaten, they came to a clearing.

"Wow," Kenshin stammered, as he looked upon the sun-baked, grassy field before him.They had arrived at Cronos' home, the vast, high plateau that he resided on, and trained on, for most of his life.

"This is it," he said, almost cheerfully, "welcome to my humble abode."He walked forward, as the sounds of birds chirping carried their way through the air.Kenshin and Aoshi slowly followed, awe-bound in the sheer enormity of this caveat away from society.Mountains bordered on every edge except for the forest they had come from, and yet this place was flat as possible, and grassy to no bounds, almost as though the high altitude the plateau resided in paid no attention to life-physics.All three made their way to a small cabin, log-built, where the smell of fish made its presence known; their stomachs rumbled even louder."Sensei!"Cronos shouted out, his arms wrapped around his stomach, as it turned painfully."Where's supper?"

A tall, visible, darkly clothed figure came around the side of the house, and into the three traveller's view.The man was old, with long white hair, a cragged, determined face, and a resilient, powerful posture.He waved towards the three, and then replied with a yell even more powerful than Cronos'."It's ready, just waiting for you guys to come here."

Kenshin jogged up to Cronos' side, and asked, "Who is that, Cronos?"

"That's my master, my teacher, Zeus-sensei.He's the current inheritor of the Tengoku o Mamoru Hito."

"Ah," Kenshin replied consciously, before falling back next to Aoshi and explaining it to the third man as well.They all made their way to the small house, as Zeus walked back inside, smoke pouring out of the chimney, and then being whisked away by the bowels of the wind.The smell of warm, freshly cooked fish was so powerful Aoshi and Kenshin almost bowled Cronos over to reach it.As they entered the sun-lit house, Zeus was preparing the meal, and unsurprisingly, he had set it up for four.Kenshin and Aoshi, strangely enough, didn't even utter a question, nor have one enter their minds, as they sat down and ate.Questions, they had picked up on, were less important than good food.

They ate, quickly, hungrily, till there was nothing but a few bones and a small portion of sake left.Kenshin nearly toppled over in fulfilment.Zeus and Cronos quickly cleared the area, then shut the door and partially covered the windows; the mood for conversation hurriedly being set.

"Well," Zeus began, powerfully (which seemed the only tone his voice was capable of), nodding towards his two guests, "I'm guessing you two have some questions which Cronos didn't answer.Feel free to ask away.I'm sure he introduced _me_ though."

Kenshin cleared his throat, as Aoshi quietly sipped the leftover sake and watched with peering eyes."He did," the Rurouni answered, "and he also told us about the Honoo no Satsujin."Zeus nodded, his face now serious and his eyes matching Aoshi's slitted stare."But the one thing he didn't really explain was why you two are fighting the Honoo no Satsujin, and why they're so bent on destroying the Meiji."

Zeus breathed gently, and then began to answer, all three others looking towards him, "They fight, because they believe they're saving Japan.**We believe they are hurting it."The old man paused for a second, closing his eyes as he spoke deeply, "Back when the four groups dedicated to saving Japan were created, they were given the specific instructions to leave Japan alone until it needed them.It was also given the order to save and spare as much Japanese life as possible.This was the reason we allowed the Meiji revolution to occur, since the Shogun had failed to save life, and was falling apart.Now though, the Honoo no Satsujin are planning to kill thousands of lives to merely restore the very ideals that were failing the people of **Japan.Their thinking is flawed, and because of that, we must stop them."

Kenshin looked at the closed, rigid eyes of Zeus, and almost _felt_ the shining white light that was shattering its way from out of them.With the clamp of the eyelid intact however, they were merely another man's eyes, shut to the windows of reality."And," Kenshin prompted, hoping to pull the man's eyes open.

"And," Zeus continued, his eyelids unyielding, "as for why they are so determined to destroy the Meiji --- that is much harder to answer.The Honoo no Satsujin, almost twenty-five years ago, broke one of the most important rules of the four groups; the idea of 'One Master, One Student'.Those twenty-five years ago, the inheritor of the Honoo no Satsujin came upon a pair of twin babies, one boy, one girl, and decided to take both of them as his students.Now though, those two young babies have grown up and have taken on, not one student, not even one student each; instead they've taken on ten students in total.This absolutely desecrates the ideals of the original Honoo no Satsujin, and it poses a much greater risk for the society of Japan."

Zeus' eyes now opened wide, but they were merely the same black, sparkling orbs they had been before; Kenshin was nearly disappointed."And you need _us_, Aoshi-san and I, to help you fight this legion of new recruits, correct?"

"Yes," the old man agreed, "we need you two, possibly the strongest left in Japan, to fight, and win."

Aoshi put down his sake, quietly, and spoke up, "I will."

All the others turned their heads towards the black-haired man, surprised at his sudden answer to a question not even asked."What?"Kenshin enquired, below quietly.

"I will fight for you, against these men, Zeus-san."Aoshi's voice left nothing to chance, and his meaning was clear.He _wanted_ to fight this fight.He _needed_ to.

"Aoshi-san," Kenshin replied, almost aghast, "you're sure about this, already?"

"Yes," Aoshi answered, "I am.When you went to fight Shishio, Kenshin, did you hesitate?"He paused, but expected no answer, "Did you stop and wonder, when you already knew what was right?No, of course not.You acted.You acted for those people like Kammiya, and Sagara, and that little boy, Yahiko.You did what you needed to."

"I did," Kenshin answered, quiet yet full of pride at the same time."I did."

"Then I will act too, for those kind of people."In the back of his mind, a fuzzy vision of a young, spirited girl nagged at Aoshi's heart.

The words spoken, the eyes said the rest needed, and Kenshin was quickly the only one left to decide his fate.He decided on one final question, "Why us, though?Why do you need us, specifically, to fight?"

"I didn't choose you, Kenshin, something else did," Zeus' voice was again raised, but not powerfully so, merely to a level that ensured confidence."The dream," he said, "the dream chose you."Kenshin eyed the old man carefully, looking, as he had with Cronos, for some sort of lie, some deceit that he was so used to picking up in people.And, as he had with Cronos, found none.

"You think it was a coincidence we all had the same dream, at the same time?"Zeus went on, "Of course not.Something above you, above me, above this whole thing; something chose us to fight these men.Something chose _us_, in this room, to save Japan."No one said anything for a sensation-filled moment, as they were held in part by Zeus' voice, "I don't know what it was, or if **it even exists.But it chose us, and we must do as it says.The winds say so."**

Kenshin turned his gaze away from the man, away from Cronos, away from even Aoshi.He looked at the ground, and a million thoughts passed through his mind.They contained many feelings: they doubted, they hated, they loved, but the one thing they all felt was wonder, and that wonder could not be fulfilled by anything but an "I will," he answered, his eyes slowly rising up, fire burning inside the cool blue spheres. 

Zeus and Cronos both smiled, and Aoshi was secretly pleased as well."Good!"Zeus astounded, standing up and placing his hand on Cronos' shoulder."Then we begin training you for this battle right away.I will train you, Aoshi, and Kenshin will be trained by my own student here," he patted Cronos' shoulder, "You won't regret this decision."

_I even wonder if I made it at all, _Kenshin asked himself, _or if that was decided upon by this "thing" as well_.All four rose, and headed outside, a culling, probing wind sweeping itself around the two new fighters, digging into their souls, and then even deeper still.

* * *

_"A month," Okeda said to himself, glumly, "how things can change in a month."_

_ _

_He was standing in front of the restaurant he now despised with every fibre in his body, and loathsomely looked back on the past month, in his own, unique way."That couple, those foul-smelling pair in front of the inn that one day, that's where it all started."A gentle and sighing brush of fish-scented air stroked his nostrils, teasing them gently."From there, it just got generally worse," he sighed, "what with my little daughter's, Euiko-chan's, illness, and all.Not to mention the fact that this place is virtually dead a hundred percent of the time," he shoved a lacklustre kick into the wall of the restaurant, "and that Seru hasn't talked to me even the slightest since I left that one day…"_

__

_These, in the world of a man with few thoughts, were problems rarely encountered, and to deal with them would take intellect far beyond **his **level.He didn't mind though, in a strange way, they gave his mind something to contemplate over during the boring recesses of work."Damn nation," he muttered, giving the wall another swift kick._

__

_The hours seemed to pass by slowly, and even as a trickle of customers came in and out, Okeda's mind was locked on nothing but his own problems, his own faults and frailties.The sun quickly set, and a rare thought of recollection passed through his mind._

__

_"Perhaps, this is merely meant to be.Maybe this was determined to be a test for me, a way of proving myself.Maybe fate resolved this for me."_

__

_The thought didn't comfort him, as he wasn't quite sure he was up to the challenge, but a scapegoat as tempting and easy as fate was not something a man like Okeda could pass up.In the quickly changing world of twists and turns, Okeda could be counted on as a standing force of neutrality._

__

_Night came, and Okeda left with little conscious thought seeping about, as he blindly and slowly walked his way through the curves of the streets.He reached his empty, quiet house, checked in on his sick daughter, who was sleeping fitfully, and then headed to sleep on the floor in the main living room, his wife having kicked him out of their room several nights previous._

__

_He lay down on the floor, and stared up at the roof, not tired in the least, yet feeling he'd need rest for the upcoming days, which would undoubtedly be full of stress."I can't go on like this," he whispered, to himself, willing the words from somewhere deeper than his sub-consciousness, "I can't."He would, though, even he knew he would. Even so, he wanted nothing more than to wake up the next morning and see all of his life's problems gone.He would persist though, even if he felt he could not._

__

_A kind, gentle, soothing shot of air came from across the skies of Japan, a nation teetering on the brink of a new era; an era one more month in the making than it had been since events began to unfold.This wind, it carried on, and it would not stop, not for anything or anyone.It was a wind of something persistent, something deeper and more powerful than any kind before; it was the wind of the heavens.It swept by a young boy's face, as he slept in a small cabin, and it blew the scent of cooking fish by the nose of a young warrior's heart.And also on that night, it was a calm reminder to a twenty-something old man, that he would persevere.Okeda slept well that night._


End file.
